Les Sables-Horta: Fink and Greck in the final sprint - "Incredible finale!"

Melwin Fink and Estelle Greck have a run shortly before the finish of the ninth edition of the Les Sables-Horta-Les Sables double-handed regatta. On the return leg to Les Sables-d'Olonne, the Franco-German duo are in fifth place and continue to push their Pogo 40 S4 "SignForCom" in the final sprint in winds of around 13 knots. "This is an incredible final! We are super tense, anything is still possible," 21-year-old Melwin Fink told YACHT online on Wednesday afternoon.

It is incredible that we are passing Pointe du Raz on our route" (Melwin Fink)

A paradoxical situation has arisen at sea, as Fink explains: "We are actually coming from the south, but we are now all approaching Les Sables-d'Olonne from the north due to the wind conditions." The tracker clearly shows the huge arc that the leading boats have completed in order to position themselves well for the showdown. Melwin Fink reported: "We have just passed Pointe du Raz near Plogoff. It's incredible that we passed this on our route. We're actually coming from the south. Now we've sailed almost as far as the Scillys and are coming in from the north."

The "SignForCom" crew, in which Estelle Greck from Lorient is standing in for the injured Lennart Burke, made strong progress on Wednesday morning as the fastest boat in the fleet at times, more than halving the gap to the leaders on "Amarris". From Les Sables-d'Olonne, Lennart Burke is eagerly watching his team's progress. He has heard from Melwin Fink that Estelle Greck, who has a lot of Class 40 experience, is "a huge help" and a "top sailor". The atmosphere in the mixed duo on board the "SignForCom" is excellent.

We give it our all once again and try not to make any more mistakes" (Melwin Fink)

The next few hours have all the makings of a sailing thriller. Melwin Fink says: "We still have about 150 nautical miles to go. The first eight boats are sailing within sight. We can see them all. We're super happy, we're giving it everything we've got and trying not to make any more mistakes." Lennart Burke is delighted that the current downwind conditions are tailored to the fast hull of the "SignForCom". He says: "Whatever the outcome, this is a very strong race for both of them!"

The fifth-placed "SignForCom" was only 14 nautical miles behind the leading "Amarris" with Achille Nebout and Gildas Mahé at around 1 p.m. on Wednesday. The leaders were followed by "Groupe SNEF" with Xavier Macaire and Morgan Lagravière, 6.9 nautical miles behind.

Your own coach and a Vendée Globe winner in the stern water

Melwin Fink and Estelle Greck were still ahead of the winners of the outward leg on "Ibsa" and "Café Joyeux" with Nico D'Estais and Léo Debisse. It was even more interesting to see who was behind the young German professional and his French co-driver: these included the highly respected coach Tanguy Leglatin with Erwan Le Draoulec on "Everial" and none other than the former Vendée Globe winner Vincent Riou with Aurélien Ducroz on "Crosscall".

A look back at the time before the start of the ninth edition of the two-handed classic Les Sables-Horta-Les Sables shows just how young Melwin Fink and Lennart Burke are in their first Class 40 season together:

The first boats are expected to arrive on Thursday morning. There should then be high tension off Les Sables-d'Olonne. Click here for tracking.