Dongfeng Race Team Edges Closer to Home Port Victory in Volvo Ocean Race

ALICANTE, Spain, Jan 10 (Reuters) – Dongfeng Race Team edged nearer to a primary for China within the 41-year-old Volvo Ocean Race on Saturday as they clung on to a paper-thin benefit within the third leg in direction of their house port of Sanya.

Three groups from China have entered the occasion, typically rated offshore crusing’s hardest and most prestigious round-the-world race, however none have but received a leg.

For Dongfeng, skippered by Frenchman Charles Caudrelier, to interrupt that duck crusing into Sanya on the southernmost tip of China could be a dream outcome.

It would additionally go away them as outright leaders after three of the 9 legs of the race.

At 1240 GMT on Saturday, they led by simply 6.3 nautical miles (nm) from Dutch challengers, Team Brunel. The pair are already locked on 4 factors apiece, together with Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing, on the head of the standings after two legs.

The 4,670nm stage from Abu Dhabi to China is among the most hazardous within the nine-month, 38,739nm race, which is scheduled to complete in Gothenburg, Sweden on June 27.

The fleet has sailed round 1,250nm of the leg to date and is predicted to reach in Sanya in a couple of fortnight, relying on sea and climate circumstances.

The boats will sail within the subsequent few days by way of the Malacca Strait, which divides the Indonesian island of Sumatra from Malaysia. It narrows to 1.5nm at one level and is among the busiest transport lanes on the earth.

The fleet might want to keep away from slow-moving or anchored small fishing boats and appreciable man-made particles.

The seven-strong fleet was already diminished by one for this and subsequent legs when Danish boat Team Vestas Wind was grounded on a reef within the Indian Ocean halfway by way of stage two from Cape Town to Abu Dhabi on Nov. 29.

The boat was badly broken and will probably be rebuilt with a return deliberate for the ultimate two legs of the race from the start of June.

Latest standings after Leg 2:

1 Team Brunel (Netherlands) 4 pts

2 Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing 4

3 Dongfeng Race Team (China) 4

4 Team Alvimedica (Turkey/U.S.) 9

5 MAPFRE (Spain) 11

6 Team Vestas Wind (Denmark) 12

7 Team SCA (Sweden) 12. (Editing by Pritha Sarkar)