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Das Solo Around the World Yacht Race
begann 1982 als BOC Challenge und bekam später den Namen
aroundalone - one sailor...one boat...around the world...alone
In 2006 wird es erstmalig als The 5-Oceans ausgesegelt.
Nach dem Vendee Globe Rennen ist es das zweithärteste Solorennen um die Welt. Mit nur zwei Zwischenstops führt der Kurs über 28.000 Meilen über alle 5 Ozeane und hat manche große Karriere im Profisegelsport begründet. Berühmte Namen wurden: Philippe Jeantot, Christophe Augin, Giovanni Soldini, Jean-Luc van den
Heede, Isabelle Autissier, Bernard Stamm und Emma Richards.
Das 5-Oceans Race 2006/07 wird das 25. Jubiläum feiern.
Organisator des Rennens ist Clipper Ventures
Das Rennen ist Teil der IMOCA World Championship der 50-und 60ft-Yachten
The drama in the VELUX 5 OCEANS kicked off before the yachts had even
crossed the start line, when Tim Troy, the "American Dreamer" and
amateur sailor, was forced to withdraw after his 60 foot yacht, the
MARGARET ANNA, failed to receive IMOCA certification. It was a
devastating blow for the entrepreneurial skipper who had dreamed all his
life of sailing around the world single-handed and had put his job and
finances on the line to fulfil his fantasies. Sadly this was not to be
the time for Troy, who keeps his dreams alive for another day.
Prior to the start, Graham Dalton of New Zealand also announced that he
would leave Bilbao behind the fleet after the mast of his Open 50 was
damaged in a storm that ripped through the Basque Capital only a few
days before the departure. This delay would ultimately prove a blessing
in disguise, as the storm itself should have been a warning of the
conditions that were to lie in wait in the Bay of Biscay.
The tone for the first leg was set by the two British rivals, Mike
Golding and Alex Thomson. During the exhibition in port race in Bilbao,
Thomson paid respect to the old superstition that the winner of a
prologue event will not win the overall prize. Unbeknown to Golding,
Thomson steered HUGO BOSS the wrong side of the finish line despite
leading by a substantial distance, thereby handing first place, by
default, to Golding's ECOVER. The FICO World Champion was not impressed
by the young skipper's sportsmanship and refused to accept the win. The
incident escalated into a war of words and bitter exchanges.
The fleet finally left Bilbao on October 22, but sailed straight into
the eye of a horrendous storm off Cape Finisterre. The savage
conditions, which registered hurricane strength winds and huge seas,
forced four of the skippers back to shore to make repairs, with only
Bernard Stamm and Kojiro Shiraishi battling through relatively
unscathed. With a mandatory 48 hour time penalty for receiving outside
assistance, the Defending Champion from Switzerland and the Spiritual
Adventurer from Japan built a strong lead from the outset of leg one to
Fremantle, Western Australia.
Once all the yachts were back out on the race track, Thomson and Golding
set theirs sights on chasing down Stamm out in front and also keeping
ahead of the other. As Golding approached the equator, he passed
Shiraishi and moved into second. Uncharacteristic weather patterns in
the South Atlantic allowed Stamm to cut the corner at the Cape of Good
Hope. Golding tried to follow, but the door was shut. Meanwhile, Thomson
had gambled on sailing farther but picking up the traditionally strong
winds to the south. The gamble worked and the two fierce rivals finished
up side by side in the Southern Ocean, separated by only a few hundred
miles at times as they battled to hold second place.
In the midst of this isolated drag race, with both skippers pushing
their boats hard, disaster struck HUGO BOSS, when the yacht suffered
irreparable damage to the canting keel system. With a storm fast
approaching, the only option was to abandon ship and the only saviour
was ECOVER. Golding didn't hesitate for a second to turn back and rescue
Thomson. In a testament to the professionalism and skill of both
sailors, they undertook a successful mid-ocean rescue. However, only
hours after rescuing Thomson, disaster struck ECOVER as her mast smashed
in three places. Forced to limp back to Cape Town, Golding eventually
retired from the race and the VELUX 5 OCEANS lost two of the favourites.
The Ultimate Solo Challenge was certainly proving that anything could
happen and that we should expect the unexpected.
Meanwhile, Bernard Stamm on CHEMINEES POUJOULAT had sailed a flawless
first leg and arrived first into Fremantle at the beginning of December.
However, Kojiro Shiraishi on SPIRIT OF YUKOH was only three days behind
Stamm, an impressive performance for a skipper just entering the Open 60
class on a yacht he had only taken ownership of months before the start.
The reindexing competitors battled through the Southern Ocean, with Sir
Robin Knox-Johnston claiming a podium finish ahead of Unai Basurko and
Graham Dalton.
The second leg to Norfolk, Virginia (USA), delivered
uncharacteristically benign conditions in the cold expanse of the
deepest Southern Ocean. Skilful sailing from Stamm saw the Swiss skipper
build an impressive lead from the start, which he would hold and extend
all the way to Norfolk, sailing another superb leg at impressive speeds.
His seamanship shone through as he played the weather to perfection to
pass through the first Southern Ocean waypoint. His navigation and
routing was exemplary. As Bernard sailed on, Kojiro Shiraishi was left
floundering as bad luck, navigational mistakes and challenging weather
patterns cost him dear.
The three back markers developed their own drag race all the way to Cape
Horn. However, with pitstops for Knox-Johnston in Ushuaia and for Dalton
in the Falkland Islands, Unai Basurko moved comfortably into third
position and secured a podium finish in leg two. With Knox-Johnston
coming in fourth, the Basque skipper and the sailing legend are now
locked in a close battle for fourth place head of the final leg,
separated by only one day's sailing.
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Fotos: www.velux5oceans.com
Basurko,Stamm, Shiraishi und Sir Robin
Bis zum Schluß wird hart gekämpft
Start Leg 3 in Norfolk
Foto: onEdition
Sir Robin hat es als 4. bis Norfolk geschafft
Stamm 1.in Norfolk - 3000nm Vorsprung
Einsam und allein zum Kap Hoorn
Start zum Leg2 um Kap Hoorn
Alex Thomson am Äquator
Stamm entflieht dem Orkan knapp
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