It's a well-known ritual in the Volvo Ocean Race. Before every start, weather oracle Gonzalo Infante is quoted with dark premonitions. So it was his turn again this time at the start of the fifth leg with his forecast, predicting a powerful depression north-east of New Zealand that should send more than just a capful of wind to the boats. "At the moment, it's like a heating machine that could generate a lot of wind as soon as it hits the cold water off New Zealand," says the Spaniard. "30 knots, maybe even 50 or 60."
At the start of the leg, which, as usual in Auckland, was watched by thousands of spectators on land and water, the two cellar children Sanya and Abu Dhabi showed that they are certainly capable of challenging the strong teams. At least for a short time. The interim result after the first few hours of sailing is not yet particularly meaningful, especially as the teams have more than 6,700 miles and around 18 days to go until the chequered flag in the Brazilian coastal town of Itajai. And, of course, Cape Horn on the way there.
The skippers did their bit to fuel interest in the first few days of sailing on this queen stage: "At the moment we're just looking at the weather forecast, which is diabolical for the first 36 hours," said Ian Walker, the skipper of Abu Dhabi, to Protokol. And Puma boss Ken Read added: "The weather could break boats and crews, so I think smart wins." By that he probably means: take your foot off the gas until the worst is over.
Overall ranking
- Telefónica, 122 points
- Groupama, 107
- Camper, 104
- Puma, 83
- Abu Dhabi, 55
- Sanya, 25
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Current positions and distances in the Tracker.
