After the start of the eighth leg of the Volvo Ocean Race, Puma was the first to set off on the approximately 1,950-mile journey from Lisbon to Lorient. But that won't bother Franck Cammas and his Groupama team much, as they are quite firmly in the saddle of the leaders after their victory in the harbour race on Saturday. The French team have an eight-point lead over Telefonica, who were penalised on Saturday for finishing last in the in-port race and a further five points behind. Puma is in third place overall, 13 points behind, followed by Camper from New Zealand, a further ten points behind.
It's all about the sausage, and everyone is close together, just as the organisers wanted in order to keep the audience interested even after eight long months of racing. "We can win this thing," said Cammas before the start, "but you should focus on the next day and the next leg first, not on the standings."
At the start of the stage, the field is sailing out into the Atlantic in medium winds from a north-westerly direction. As things stand at the moment, the winner is expected to arrive in Lorient next Saturday. And the French are naturally hoping that this will be Groupama.
