Clipper Race: Henri Lloyd wins race to Jamaica

(May 18, 2014) – In one of the closest, most nail biting finishes of the Clipper 2013-14 Race so far, the 590 mile Race 12 Spirit of Jamaica Chase came down to just 31 seconds, with Henri Lloyd holding off long term rivals GREAT Britain to claim line honours.

Henri Lloyd crossed the Folly Point Lighthouse finish line at 20:41:56 UTC with GREAT Britain right behind them, finishing at 20:42:27 UTC. Switzerland took the third podium position 50 minutes later at 21:32:00 UTC.

Henri Lloyd skipper Eric Holden’s jubilation was evident as he commented: “So many races now, we have been back and forth with GREAT Britain and you could just see how many points could be won or lost by just a few seconds. It would have been tough to have lose to GREAT Britain again, three times in a row. It certainly feels like a bit of redemption for us this time.

“We were leading for the majority of this race, but with about 20 miles to go, GREAT Britain managed to get around us and pulled ahead of us but with just two miles to go, we managed to pull ahead again. It was probably one of our closest races and toughest battles we’ve had together but it was good, everyone was very excited. We love finishes like that.

“Like every skipper and all the crew, I’ve been looking forward to this stopover. We have limited corporate engagements. The climate, the beaches, everything. Everyone’s very happy, hopefully it’s a restful time in Jamaica and we get the chance to just recharge the batteries for the next race.”

Team Garmin finshed fourth at 22:46 UTC, Old Pulteney were fifth aT 23:07 UTC and PSP Logistics crossed the finish line in sixth place at 00:04 UTC. Click here for full race standings.

Report by event media.

Skipper reports: http://www.clipperroundtheworld.com/skipper-reports
Race tracker: http://yb.tl/clipper2013-race12
Race website: http://www.clipperroundtheworld.com

Background:
The 40,000 mile Clipper 2013-14 Round the World Yacht Race began in London, UK on September 1 for the fleet of twelve identical Tony Castro designed Clipper 70s.

Having transited the Panama Canal, the 12 teams began Race 12, the 590 mile sprint to Jamaica – the Spirit of Jamaica Chase – on May 14. The start of Race 13 to New York begins May 24.

The race route includes Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; Cape Town, South Africa; Albany, Sydney, Hobart and Brisbane, Australia; Singapore; Qingdao, China; San Francisco, USA; Panama; Jamaica; New York, USA; Derry-Londonderry, Ireland; and Den Helder, Netherlands before returning to London in July.