19.05.2006
Volvo Ocean Race on home stint to Portsmouth
May 19, 2006, Portsmouth, England – After sailing 3,200 nautical miles from New York, the yachts competing in the Volvo Ocean Race 2005-06 are expected to arrive into Portsmouth tomorrow evening.
Dutch entry ABN AMRO ONE, skippered by New Zealander Mike Sanderson, has established an impressive 188 mile lead over the fleet. Local Hampshire sailor Robert Greenhalgh, who is competing onboard the lead boat, will be hoping to be the first Englishman to touch down on home soil.
British skipper Neal McDonald is also racing hard to reach home. Along with team mate and fellow countryman Tim Powell, they are currently placed second overall onboard Ericsson and will be hoping to indextain this position to the finish to score their best leg result.
The lead boat is expected to pass the scoring gate off Lizard Point, the most southerly point of indexland Britain, around first light tomorrow morning. From there the fleet will sail towards Portsmouth, leaving the Needles (the most western point of the Isle of Wight) to starboard as they battle their way up through the heavily tidal and challenging Solent.
The Volvo Open 70 racing yachts are currently completing leg 7 of the Volvo Ocean Race 2005-06. The race concludes in Göteborg, Sweden, on the 17 June.
Due to the nature of the events over the last 36 hours, the arrivals of the yachts into Portsmouth will be a relatively low key affair. We politely request that attending media respect the wishes of the competing teams and their families.
For further information and arrival updates log onto www.volvooceanrace.org.
General information:
Key dates:
20-21 May Arrivals
29 May In-port race
2 June Restart, leg 8 (Portsmouth-Rotterdam)
Current Leaderboard
[position/team name/skipper/race points to date]
1st ABN AMRO ONE, Mike Sanderson (NZL) 70.5 pts
2nd Pirates of the Caribbean, Paul Cayard (USA) 47.5 pts
3rd movistar, Bouwe Bekking (NED) 47.0 pts
4th Brasil 1, Torben Grael (BRA) 42.0 pts
5th ABN AMRO TWO, Sebastien Josse (FRA) 42.0 pts
6th Ericsson Racing Team, Neal McDonald (GBR) 34.5 pts
7th Brunel, Grant Wharington (AUS)/Matt Humphries (GBR) 2.5 pts
For further information please contact:
Cameron Kelleher, PR Director
Tel: +44 (0) 7795 185 430
Email: cameron.kelleher@volvooceanrace.org
Sacha Oswald, Travelling Press Officer in Portsmouth
Tel: +44 (0) 7816 275 498
Email: sacha.oswald@volvooceanrace.org
- Further information can be found at www.volvooceanrace.org.
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