Volvo Ocean Race: The ending has begun

Gothenburg, SWE (June 21, 2018) – Three teams started the final leg of the Volvo Ocean Race today in an unprecedented dead-heat on the overall leaderboard.

And in the winner-take-all sprint from Gothenburg to The Hague, it was Charles Caudrelier’s Dongfeng Race Team taking the early advantage over their rivals for the overall title, Team Brunel and MAPFRE.

While Dongfeng Race Team found a clean lane to windward for the race start, Xabi Fernández’s MAPFRE and Bouwe Bekking’s Team Brunel were entangled at the leeward end of the line. In fact, MAPFRE was boxed out at the line and needed to circle around before starting behind the fleet.

As the boats lined up for the early reaching stage of Leg 11, Caudrelier was in pole position, vying with team AkzoNobel for the early lead, and well ahead of his competition for overall race victory, Brunel and MAPFRE.

“We’re excited to get going on this leg. It looks interesting and this is the kind of leg I really like,” Caudrelier had said before the start. “It’s reminds me of when I started to race, this kind of coastal racing. We’re ready for the fight and we know it’s going to be a big fight for sure.”

The race course for Leg 11 was revised prior to the start, adjusting the length to 963.4nm to ensure fan-friendly arrival times along the route and finish.

After the start, the boats were sent west out of the islets dotting the entrance to Gothenburg before turning north to head to a turning mark just off the coast of Norway. Then, it’s a dive south to round a mark near the Danish city of Aarhus, followed by a return north around the top of Denmark before racing south to The Hague. Numerous tactical options are in play throughout the leg, with the weather forecast promising strong winds early, and lighter conditions near the finish on Sunday.

By 22:20 UTC, the fleet had yet to make the first turn off Norway, spending today mostly upwind in varying winds from sub 10 knots upward to near 20. Dongfeng has 10nm to go, with the wind possibly softening at the mark.

The ETA in Aarhus is for tomorrow afternoon, while the finish in The Hague is expected on the afternoon of June 24.

For crew list… click here.

Race details – Tracker – Scoreboard – Race route – Facebook – YouTube

Leg 11 – Position Report (22:20 UTC)
1. Dongfeng Race Team (CHN), Charles Caudrelier (FRA), 865.0 nm DTF
2. MAPFRE (ESP), Xabi Fernández (ESP), 0.2 nm DTL
3. Vestas 11th Hour Racing (DEN/USA), Charlie Enright (USA), 1.8 nm DTL
4. Team AkzoNobel (NED), Simeon Tienpont (NED), 2.7 nm DTL
5. Team Brunel (NED), Bouwe Bekking (NED), 3.6 nm DTL
6. Turn the Tide on Plastic (POR), Dee Caffari (GBR), 4.9 nm DTL
7. Team Sun Hung Kai/Scallywag (HKG), David Witt (AUS), 5.0 nm DTL
DTF – Distance to Finish; DTL – Distance to Lead

Overall Results (after 10 of 11 legs)
1. MAPFRE (ESP), Xabi Fernández (ESP), 65 points
2. Team Brunel (NED), Bouwe Bekking (NED), 65
3. Dongfeng Race Team (CHN), Charles Caudrelier (FRA), 64*
4. Team AkzoNobel (NED), Simeon Tienpont (NED), 53
5. Vestas 11th Hour Racing (DEN/USA), Charlie Enright (USA), 38
6. Team Sun Hung Kai/Scallywag (HKG), David Witt (AUS), 30
7. Turn the Tide on Plastic (POR), Dee Caffari (GBR), 29
* One additional point will be awarded to the team with the best elapsed time at the conclusion of the race in The Hague. Currently, Dongfeng would win this point.

NOTE: The In-Port Race Series is a separate event, but should there be a tie on the overall race leaderboard at the end of the offshore legs, the In-Port Race Series standings will be used to break the tie.

2017-18 Edition: Entered Teams – Skippers
• Team AkzoNobel (NED), Simeon Tienpont (NED)
• Dongfeng Race Team (CHN), Charles Caudrelier (FRA)
• MAPFRE (ESP), Xabi Fernández (ESP)
• Vestas 11th Hour Racing (DEN/USA), Charlie Enright (USA)
• Team Sun Hung Kai/Scallywag (HKG), David Witt (AUS)
• Turn the Tide on Plastic (POR), Dee Caffari (GBR)
• Team Brunel (NED), Bouwe Bekking (NED)

Background: Racing the one design Volvo Ocean 65, the 2017-18 Volvo Ocean Race begins in Alicante, Spain on October 22 2017 with the final finish in The Hague, Netherlands on June 30 2018. In total, the 11-leg race will visit 12 cities in six continents: Alicante, Lisbon, Cape Town, Melbourne, Hong Kong, Guangzhou, Auckland, Itajaí, Newport, Cardiff, Gothenburg, and The Hague. A maximum of eight teams will compete.

Source: Volvo Ocean Race