MSR completes

By 7AM this morning five more yachts had crossed the finish line of the 28th Rolex Middle Sea Race. British yacht Nisida led the minor charge finishing just before midnight, whilst Martin Scicluna's Air Malta Falcon (MLT) completed the course just before seven. In between came the Swiss boat Tai Shan, Elusive Medbank and finally Guts 'n' Glory (GER), which sailed most of the race with only a trysail after their main gave out before she reached Stromboli. By 5PM two more - Obelix (ITA) and Slingshot (GBR) - were back on their berths, with Global Yacht Racing (GBR) hoping to arrive at some point this evening.

The yachts finishing now are in conditions that were all but unimaginable 48 -72 hours ago. The Royal Malta Yacht Club has been bathed in warm sunshine for much of the day, with members enjoying lunch outside on the terrace overlooking the finish and watching those boats coming home having to short tack up Marsamxett Harbour on the vaguest of zephyrs. A far cry from the extreme winds faced by the crews from Saturday night until Tuesday morning. The frontal system that put three-quarters of the fleet into harbour durign the first 36-hours is a distant memory. It is only the stories and faces of those who completed the course that give a true measure of the race.

Rambler Wins All, After All

George David's Rambler (USA) has been confirmed as the overall handicap winner of Rolex Middle Sea Race 2007.

George David's crew, led by Ken Read, has secured an historic treble - overall win, line honours and course record - achieved only once before in the 39 year history of the race, in 2000 - coincidentally by Bob McNeill's Zephyrus IV whose Course Record Rambler smashed yesterday.

George David will be awarded the Rolex Middle Sea Race Trophy at the race prize-giving to be held on Saturday 27th October 2007.

Records and Rescues

Two stories of dramatically contrasting fortune have unfolded over the past 24-hours of the 2007 Rolex Middle Sea Race. Both stories ended happily. Both could have ended quite differently. In one, an American crew defied the elements to destroy a seven-year old course record. In the second, an Australian crew were rescued from their yacht as she threatened to founder on the wind-lashed northern coast of Sicily. The crews of Rambler and Loki will remember this race for years to come.

For George David and the crew of the 90-foot Rambler (USA) it was a dream come true. Hardly in their wildest dreams could they have believed they would eclipse so comprehensively the Rolex Middle Sea Race course record at their first attempt. Remember Neville Crichton had two goes in the exact same boat and did not come close; such was the cruel nature of the conditions during his assaults.

For Loki the drama was truly life threatening. Sailing along in 35-knots at 15/16 knots of boatspeed there was a sudden bang and the crew saw the rudder floating away behind the boat. Owner Stephen Ainsworth explained how they brought the boat under some semblance of control and made contact with Race Control to report their circumstances at 1730 on Saturday evening. Tomasso Chieffi, a last minute addition to the crew of Atalanta II, the Italian mini-maxi of Carlo Puri Negri, made the seriousness of the situation absolutely vivid. On hearing of Loki's distress, Atalanta diverted back to see what assistance she could offer, as Chieffi explained, "sailing along side with Loki, Lucas Brown finally was able to get in contact with them over the phone. We heard that the rudder blade was broken. The first idea was to tow them but we did not have a rope that was strong enough to do so. Furthermore, the sea was so high that sometimes the waves were breaking over the mast. It was very difficult to go too near to Loki, the rolling motion was so huge that it was absolutely too dangerous."

MSR Line Honours

George David's 90-foot super-maxi Rambler (USA) took line honours in the 28th Rolex Middle Sea Race at 11.45.03 this morning.

In doing so, Rambler, skippered by Ken Read has taken over16 hours off the previous course record set by Zephyrus IV in 2000.

Middle Sea Race Retirements

Retirement after retirement is phoned into the Royal Malta Yacht Club Race Control, whilst the front-runner makes record-breaking progress towards the finish. After a relatively benign start on Saturday, the trouble began as yachts began to reach to the Sicilian coast. On Sunday afternoon some twenty-two yachts had retired including four of the big ones - Titan 12 (USA), Valkyrie (CAN), Whisper (IRL) and Ourdream (GBR) - leaving thirty-five still racing.

Race leader Rambler (USA) has been eating up the miles over the 24-hours since reaching Capo Passero shortly after 1700 on Saturday evening. George David's 90-foot supermaxi with Ken Read as skipper belied her name and strode up the eastern seaboard of Sicily, springing out of the Strait of Messina at 0100 on Sunday morning. Rounding Stromboli at 0435, she has made reasonable progress across the top of Sicily and was just north of Favignana at 1600, making 19-knots. The forecast frontal system looks set to blow the big white supermaxi home at speed with winds from the northwest topping out at 40-45-knots. There is the probability of a confused sea state that may slow her up a little, but short of gear failure or breakage she could reach the finish at around 0900 on Monday. If so she would have smashed the existing course record. But she needs to finish before such predictions become meaningful.

Behind Rambler lie Atalanta II (ITA) and Loki (AUS). This rosy picture of last night's proceedings was not echoed further back in the fleet where the retirements started coming in thick and fast at about 1800 on Saturday night. The smaller, slower yachts encountered very difficult conditions as they made their way up Sicily towards the Strait of Messina.

Middle Sea Race started

The 2007 Rolex Middle Sea Race set off today from Marsamxett Harbour with the crews apprehensive about what may lie ahead but displaying a quiet confidence that they are prepared for tough race and some tough decisions. Last night, 60 yachts were registered to take part. Following a pretty sobering weather briefing, three yachts chose not to start this morning. Since the start four yachts have retired, leaving 53 yachts on the course. In the absence of a record fleet, the event may still make history. This morning's routings for the two fastest monohulls - George David's 90-foot Rambler (USA) and Tom Hill's 76-foot Titan 12 (USA) - suggested a finish time of between 7 and 8AM on Monday morning! The fleet was divided into five starts, the first group of the smallest yachts setting off at 1100 to the thunderous echo of the field gun. The doublehanded British yacht Slingshot of Shaun Murphy and Roger Barber repeated its excellent start of last year and led the fleet off the line. It was the Maltese old-stager Arthur Podesta and Elusive Medbank that claimed the glory of first boat out of the harbour and round the turning mark off Tigne Point. Podesta was closely followed by Georges Bonello DuPuis' Primadonna (MLT) and the Ripard/Calascione family on Jammin (MLT). A short break in proceedings allowed the crowds to catch their breath and the bigger yachts time to enter the harbour before the final group of three starts. The Greek yacht Superfast Racing, a former winner of the race (as Optimum 3), led the third start away whilst Cippa Lippa (ITA) found herself red-faced and over early. Not a crucial error in 607 mile race, but not good in front of so many onlookers. Start four saw the big boys come to line. Taking full use of the ten minutes between the preparatory signal and the start gun, these behemoths appeared to sniff the air at the line one or two times before returning into the depths of the harbour. Stephen Ainsworth's Loki from Australia seemed to get the best of it closely followed by Titan XII nearest to the Royal Malta Yacht Club. Rambler with Jerry Kirby on the bow and Ken Read on the helm had a decidedly second row start but soon carved her way to the front. At 4.45pm this afternoon Rambler was abreast of Sicily making 12 knots, with Titan 12 behind and then a chasing pack comprising Superfast, Ourdream Damiani (ITA), Whisper (IRE), Atalanta II (ITA), Valkyrie (CAN) and Loki about three miles further back. Talking to the skippers and navigators this morning, they were all keenly aware of the weather approaching the racecourse. Nick Lykiardopulo (owner of Aera that won overall the storm ridden Rolex Sydney Hobart in 2004 and who participated in the infamous '98 race aswell) is racing as Navigator on Nikos Lazos and Pericles Livas' Superfast Racing. Lykiardopulo felt the 52-foot Greek yacht could be well-postioned for the system despite its strength, "I think we'll see 55 knots tops, which is probably more than we saw in 04, but quite a bit less than in '98. But we'll be fine. She is a strong boat, we'll have to spend a bit more time on the wind than the maxis but we should be most of the way across the north of Sicily before the wind hits. It might get a bit bumpy on the western corner." He even found time to laugh that, "the good thing about being navigator when it pours with rain is that you get to sit down below and check the equipment."

Ericsson Apoint Grael

Ericsson have turned to the mercurial talents of Torben Grael to skipper their ‘international’ crew in the 2008-09 race.

The 47-year-old Brazilian, who led Brasil 1 to third place overall in an eventful 2005-06 campaign, replaces John Kostecki who left the Ericsson two-boat project in August.

Grael’s achievements make impressive reading. Gold medals in the Star class at the Olympic Games in Atlanta (1996) and Athens (2004), silver in the Soling in Los Angeles (1984) and Star bronze in Seoul (1988) and Sydney (2000). He also boasts a string of world and international titles.

He has been involved in three America’s Cups campaigns including the role of tactician for Luna Rossa Challenge in Valencia at this year’s event. Prior to the 2005-06 Volvo, Grael was a member of the Innovation Kvaerner crew in the 1997-98 Whitbread.

This time he is back to lead a stellar line-up assembled for Ericsson’s international boat with his sights fixed on overall honours. “Sailing around the world is one of the most difficult things you can do in the sport,” he said. “Having done the Volvo Ocean Race last time and getting a good result, and having a good possibility of doing even better this time is what drove me to do the race again.

“The Ericsson team has a lot of structure, everything is in place. They have the time to do things the way they should be done and that’s the main reason that I decided to join them.”

Rolex MS Race

This time last night only 41 of the 70 yachts on the entry-list for the Rolex Middle Sea Race 2007 had completed their formalities. At 4.00pm today that number stood at 55 with more expected, a whole host of yachts arriving during Thursday making the most of the improved conditions. In place of the cold northeasterly that prevailed last evening with driving rain, the crews have enjoyed a warmer day in which to prepare themselves and their boats.

The yachts and crews have been arriving steadily throughout the day and the level of activity at the Royal Malta Yacht Club and Grand Harbour Marina has stepped up considerably. Scrutineering by the race officials continues, as provisions and equipment are being loaded onto the yachts and cruising paraphernalia is removed. Boats that were on the hard and could not be launched in the face of the huge swell that has battered the northern shoreline for the last four days are now going in. And, boats stuck in the water needing to be lifted are finally coming out for last-minute attention to the hull.

MSR07

With a Force 6-7 Gregale (described as ‘moderate winds' on the local weather websites) blowing through the islands overnight and showing no signs of abating during the day, the Royal Malta Yacht Club was forced to cancel the first of two coastal races scheduled as warm ups for the main event - the Rolex Middle Sea Race that starts this Saturday at 1100. The strong Easterly wind being generated is forecast to continue until tomorrow raising the possibility that the second coastal race could also be cancelled. Better news is that on Wednesday evening the wind should start to decrease, at least to a Force 5 or 6, and back to a more northeasterly airflow. If the decrease continues, it may allow some of the twenty or so yachts currently stuck in and around Sicily to make the passage to down to Malta in time for the start.

Greece in Middle Sea Race

At close of entries, the 28th edition of the Rolex Middle Sea Race has attracted sixty-nine yachts, one more than started in 2006 and, if they all hit the start line this coming Saturday, the race will have set a new record entry level albeit only just. Perhaps most worrying for the organisers, the Royal Malta Yacht Club, not all the yachts are yet in Malta, which is currently being battered by 30 miles an hour winds. These winds are expected to steadily subside over the coming few days, hopefully sufficiently to enable all foreign competitors to arrive.

Many yachts and crews from abroad have chosen to come back and do the race again. One such case is Sean Murphy who is tackling the race double-handed for the second time on his J-105 Slingshot. He had originally planned to race with Bonello DuPuis, but a turn of fate left Slingshot sitting in Malta. "

The Greek Farr 52, Superfast Racing (Optimum 3), is also back again and in their case for the fourth time. Having won the race in 2004, owners Pericles Livas and Nikos Lazos are keen to repeat their victorious odyssey, as Livas describes, "we first competed in the 2003 Rolex Middle Sea Race finishing 12th. It was the first time the team raced continuously for 5 days. Every member got excited and in the stormy 2004 edition the team returned combat-ready and won first place overall. We could not defend our title in 2005 and then 2006 was a very light winds for us. So this year we are back again and very hungry. We are 15 Greek amateur sailing enthusiasts looking forward to create another great set of memories."

Recalling 2004, Livas tells how the year was an amazing one for the crew, "Greece won the European Championships in soccer out of nowhere and then hosted the Olympic Games in Athens with unbelievable success. As a Greek athletic team we showed up for the 25th anniversary of this race in very high spirits. We raced very well from the start and were among the top 3 in all turning points. That win was major for the team and Greece and we were very proud!"

"The Greek Sailing Federation praised the team, which was very rewarding. But even more rewarding was surfing at 30+ knots of speed on the fourth night out at sea between Pantelleria and Lampedusa on mountainous waves and winds up to 56 knots in a pitch black night heavily loaded with thunder and amazing lightning! We later called it "Hollywood Night" and remains until today the team's favourite experience! And, that is what drives us back."

The Rolex Middle Sea Race takes the fleet on a 606 nautical-mile adventure that starts and finishes in Malta. The start line is unique, lying as it does between the 18th century Fort Manoel and the 16th century bastions of Valetta. The route takes yachts up the eastern seaboard of Sicily to the Strait of Messina, passing the active volcano of Etna. At the second active volcano - the island of Stromboli - the fleet turns west to the Egadi Islands and the northwest corner of Sicily. Here the fleet heads south passing the island of Pantelleria before turning back towards Malta at the island of Lampedusa.

The Rolex Middle Sea Race 2007 starts from Marsamxett Harbour, Malta, on Saturday 20th October 2007. The Malta Rolex Cup, a two-race inshore series on the 16th and 17th October, will precede the main race.

Clipper Round the World Race

Following a tactical decision to move away from the Brazilian coast Nova Scotia has given away second place to Glasgow: Scotland with style Clipper. There a chance the Scottish team will also have to tack away from the coast later today but it is possible that Nova Scotia has moved too far from the coast for the boat to regain second place.

Durban 2010 and Beyond has finally cleared the difficult stretch of the Brazilian coast that has been worrying skipper Ricky Chalmers for the last few days. The South Africans have now managed to take advantage of Nova Scotia's tack away from the coast and extend their lead to 63 nautical miles.

Joff Bailey, Race Director, comments, "It would appear as though Durban 2010 and Beyond has a clear run home to the finish in Salvador but the winds can be fickle and unpredictable when sailing close to the shore especially at night time and with more than 200 nautical miles still to cover the positions could change again."

Liverpool 08's tactics of staying further east have finally paid off as they moved ahead of Hull & Humber into fourth place. This lead should be consolidated over the next 24 hours as Liverpool 08 has a more favourable angle on the wind than Hull & Humber. The entire fleet is now in the Southern Hemisphere.

Barcolana

Thursday morning the first RC44 Cup fleet race will start. Today the crews tested their boats in the Gulf of Trieste with over 20 knots of Bora wind, the best performances came from Team Omega steered by Russell Coutts and Team Aqua with Chris Bake at the helm. 10 teams will be racing, so the rankings could change since there are many participants and highly professional teams. Russell Cutts likes Bora wind, he knows he’ll have some advantage with strong wind.

There are 775 entrants in Barcolana 39 so far, among which the Farr80 Banca Generali, with Pelaschier at the helm, who will challenge Cino Ricci, recruited for the race by the Army. The three strongest helmsmen in the world, Russell Coutts, Dean Barker and James Spithill, presented today Trieste RC44 Cup to the press.

Velux 0 Oceans

Only weeks after announcing that Velux is going ahead with its sponsorship of a second 5 Oceans solo round the world race, organisers Clipper Ventures have hit a major snag: the race has been categorically rejected by the Open 60 class in favour of the rival Barcelona World Race, run by Ellen MacArthur's and Mark Turner's OC Group.

IMOCA, the Open 60 skippers' association, has highlighted what it calls 'previous problemswith the last two editions of the Velux 5 Oceans' and says 'an internal survey showed the race was mostly not part of the skippers' priorities'.

Instead, the class is putting its full weight behind the fourly-yearly Route du Rhum race in 2010 and a second edition of the two-handed Barcelona World Race later the same year.

This leaves Clipper Ventures with a big problem: it will be extremely difficult to attract top sponsors and skippers to the Velux 5 Oceans.

Osprey Cup

Later this month, the St. Petersburg Yacht Club (St. Petersburg, Fla.) will host some of the world's most accomplished sailors during the Rolex Osprey Cup, an International Sailing Federation (ISAF) Grade 1 women's match racing regatta. Scheduled for October 18-21, the regatta will feature 10 international teams, including the world's #3 ranked Team Acuity, skippered by Katie Spithill (Pittwater, Australia). Spithill, the runner-up at the 2007 ISAF Women's Match Racing World Championship, will compete against nine other top skippers including #4 ranked Sally Barkow (Nashotah, Wis.), a two-time world champion and Rolex Yachtswoman of the Year, and Liz Baylis (San Rafael, Calif.), also a past Rolex Yachtswoman of the Year and the current U.S. Women's Match Racing champion. Racing takes place daily on Tampa Bay in Sonar class keelboats, within viewing range of the St. Petersburg Municipal Pier.

Transat Jacques Vabre

With 60 boats registered, the eighth edition of the Transat Jacques Vabre confirms the success of this race and its establishment as a major classic. Created back in 1993, and indeed ever since, this race, which follows the historic route of the coffee trade, has grown continually both in terms of its fame and sporting interest. For each new edition, the greatest yachtsmen turn up to compete in the Transat Jacques Vabre.

60 boats at the start, while there were 38 two years ago and 13 for the first edition back in 1993. 120 of the top ocean racing skippers will be present in Le Havre, thus confirming the popularity of the ocean race and showing that all of the skippers still have that desire to take part.

Since 1995, the teams in Le Havre have managed to create some exceptional conditions for the hosting of the race, and steadily improved on them with each new edition. Today, Le Havre is one of the top homeports for ocean races. For this eighth Transat Jacques Vabre, a marina is going to be created at the back of the Paul Vatine Basin for the thirty Class 40 boats, with the multihulls and the monohulls spread over the two sides of the basin.

A wide-ranging permanent programme of events is planned for the 7000 m2 village, which will be open throughout the week. It will be open each day from Friday 26th October to Sunday 4th November from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. with three late night openings.

The boats must be in harbour in Le Havre by noon on Friday 26th October.

The prize-giving ceremony will take place in Salvador in two stages. The first evening on Tuesday 20th November will concern the first boats to finish, while a second evening will reward the Class 40 boats on Tuesday 27th November.

Transat Jacques Vabre

Leading British print and electronic media company Pindar, prolific supporters of British sailing, announced that Jo Royle and Alexia Barrier will skipper Class 40 yacht Pindar 40 in this year’s Transat Jacques Vabre (TJV) transatlantic race. Over 40 boats have been entered in the Class 40 fleet which will race from France to Brazil starting on the 3rd November, Jo and Alexia being the sole female duo.

33rd AC in Valencia?

As a consequence of the uncertainty and the delays arising from the Golden Gate Yacht Club Law suit in New York, AC Management (ACM) is concerned that the feasibility of organising the next America's Cup in Valencia in 2009 has been effectively compromised. ACM will in the coming days engage in consultations with the Defender, the Challenger of Record, the Competitors and the Spanish Authorities on this specific matter. ACM is considering all options, including the possibility of postponing the event to a later date. In the meantime, ACM understands that SNG continues to try to find a resolution of the dispute pending with Golden Gate Yacht Club in New York.

Suzuki Signs 3 Year Sponsorship

Suzuki signs up to be main sponsor of La Solitaire for the next 3 years, an event they have supported since 2006. Suzuki France and Groupe Le Figaro have signed a partnership deal for 2008, 2009 and 2010. The race therefore calls itself once again “La Solitaire du Figaro” and introduces a new event logo with the main sponsor, Suzuki. Mr Yukata Higashikubo, President of Suzuki France and Mr Francis Morel, the General Manager for the Groupe Le Figaro, are pleased to announce this partnership that will come into play for the 39th edition of La Solitaire du Figaro in 2008.

Artemis Wins TP52

In the end they made it look easy. With only a single score outside the top five all week - a six in the first race - Torbjorn Tornqvist's Artemis (SWE), with Russell Coutts in the role of tactician (and at times magician) swept to a comprehensive victory at the Rolex TP52 Global Championship 2007. The winning margin was 26.75 points ahead of 2006 Champion, Eamon Conneely's Patches (IRL). The enormity of the win is emphasized by only 6 points separating the next four boats.

Rolex TP52 Global Championship

Only one race on Friday at the Rolex TP52 Global Championship. But what a race. No huge change in the leaderboard, but when you get to see TP52s screaming downwind in 20+ knots, that seems a minor detail. Peter de Ridder's Mean Machine (MON) gave a heavy-air sailing demonstration to lead the fleet around the course and finish some way ahead of Stay Calm (GBR). Artemis (SWE) kept her championship aspirations on target with a fourth, whilst Windquest (USA) might be forgiven for keeping their heads down after an unfortunate incident with HRH Harald of Norway's Fram XVI (NOR) at the second windward mark. Going into the final day Artemis has a fifteen-point lead.