The Wave, Muscat reclaims lead on penultimate day

Muscat, Oman (March 13, 2015) – The Wave, Muscat gave their home fans something to cheer about on the penultimate day of the Extreme Sailing Series™ in Oman, finishing on the podium in seven out of eight races, to reclaim their place at the top of the leaderboard ahead of tomorrow’s final showdown.

With just 16 points separating the top four boats, tomorrows racing is sure to keep sports fans around the world on tenterhooks as the world-class fleet battle for honours in Muscat.

“We were consistent today as opposed to yesterday. We had solid starts, good decision-making and generally it was a great day. Yesterday we learnt a lot – we will bank that to avoid the same mistakes”, explained tactician and two-time British Olympic gold medallist, Sarah Ayton on the dock after racing. “I think tomorrow it will come down to the very last race so we will take it one at a time, try to maximize the points and I am sure it will be a great final showdown.”

The pressure has now shifted to Danish SAP Extreme Sailing Team who, despite keeping their averages up all day, relinquished their hold at the top of the leaderboard. A consistent score line by the Austrian Red Bull Sailing Team including three race wins added an important 66 points to their tally, and the team are now up to third place. And just shy of the podium by two points, Oman Air, with one of the UK’s top 49er sailors Stevie Morrison in the driving seat, are poised and ready to pounce – with a 30 point buffer over the chasing pack.

With the points so tight at the top and conditions set to get light and shifty, the Extreme Sailing Series Act 2 Muscat could still be won or lost in a race.

ESS website – Scoreboard – Crew details – Live coverage

Extreme Sailing Series™ Act 2 Muscat standings after Day 3, 22 races
1st The Wave, Muscat (OMA) Leigh McMillan, Sarah Ayton, Pete Greenhalgh, Ed Smyth, Nasser Al Mashari 176 points.
2nd SAP Extreme Sailing Team (DEN) Jes Gram-Hansen, Rasmus Køstner, Thierry Douillard, Mads Emil Stephensen, Brad Farrand 169 points.
3rd Red Bull Sailing Team (AUT) Hans Peter Steinacher, Jason Waterhouse, Adam Piggott,Shaun Mason, Stewart Dodson 162 points.
4th Oman Air (OMA) Stevie Morrison, Nic Asher, Ted Hackney, Ed Powys, Ali Al Balashi 160 points.
5th Team Turx powered by Kaya Ropes (TUR) Mitch Booth, Edhem Dirvana, Selim Kakış, Diogo Cayolla, Matteo Auguadro 128 points.
6th GAC Pindar (GBR) Seve Jarvin, Ian Williams, Marcus Ashley-Jones, Tyson Lamond, James Wierzbowski 121 points.
7th Lino Sonego Team Italia (ITA) Lorenzo Bressani, Enrico Zennaro, Gabriele Olivo, Tom Buggy, Stefano Ciampalini 116 points.
8th Gazprom Team Russia (RUS) Igor Lisovenko, Phil Robertson, Garth Ellingham, Alexander Bozhko, Aleksey Kulakov 100 points.

Report by ESS media.

Background: The Extreme Sailing Series is in its ninth season, with this year’s eight event tour travelling through Asia, Europe, and Australia. The platform used is the one design Extreme 40 catamaran, with the format highlighting ‘stadium’ short-course racing in front of the public.