Transat CIC: After tear in mainsail and repair - Boris Herrmann moves forward

The challenges in the Transat CIC are never-ending. Since Tuesday evening, Boris Herrmann has had his hands full with a tear in his mainsail. "I repaired my mainsail and lost a few miles because of it. It's always exhausting to work on a sail like that - with everything else you have to do," Herrmann told YACHT online. He was "pretty exhausted", but "not too stressed". After successful repairs, the "Malizia - Seaexplorer" skipper was able to move up to fifth place overnight by Thursday morning.

French co-favourite Charlie Dalin on "Macif Santé Prévoayance" remains in the lead, 66 nautical miles ahead of Herrmann. In the meantime, six of the 33 Imocas that originally started the 3500-nautical-mile classic across the North Atlantic have retired. With the Frenchwoman Clarisse Crémer on "L'Occitane En Provence", another soloist had to announce a repair stop in the Azores on Thursday night. During a routine check, she discovered a problem with a frame in the foredeck to which the suspension of the J3 neck fitting is attached and which transfers the forces into the hull.

Transat CIC: Setback for Clarisse Crémer

Severely disappointed, Clarisse Crémer has to cover around 500 nautical miles to the Azores at a boat speed of around six knots. She wants to meet her shore crew there for repairs. Meanwhile, Switzerland's Justine Mettraux ("Teamwork-Team SNEF") received a 70-minute penalty on Wednesday evening for breaking her engine seal on the first day. She was in ninth place at the end.

After passing the light wind band, the Imocas picked up speed again at the front, having already jibed on Wednesday evening. They have a tough day ahead of them with winds of over 30 knots and swell of three to four metres when they pass the imaginary halfway mark on the course from Lorient to New York. Britain's Sam Davies ("Initiatives Coeur"), who recently overtook Vendée Globe winner Yannick Bestaven ("Maître CoQ V") and moved up to third place, has performed remarkably well so far. Davies sailed this course for the first time in 2008 in the Artemis Transat on her legendary "Roxy". Back then, Loick Peyron won on "Gitana 80", while she finished fifth.

Class40 besties chase the Imocas

The Imoca soloists Tanguy Le Turquais ("Lazare", 13th), Benjamin Ferré ("Monnoyeur - Duo for a Job", 14th) and Violette Dorange ("Devenir", 19th) continued their impressive performance on the morning of 2 May. They are contesting the Transat CIC on older non-foilers. It is also striking that the best Class 40 skippers are not chasing the Imoca leader by 300 nautical miles.

The old and new leader Fabien Delahaye ("Legallais Team Voile") and "Crédit Mutuel" skipper Ian Lipinski are still engaged in a thrilling duel. Only 1.7 nautical miles separated the two Frenchmen on Thursday morning. They were followed by Ambrogio Beccaria (Alla Grande Pirelli), Nicolas d'Estais (Café Joyeux) and Alberto Bona (Ibsa). "La Boulangère Bio" soloist Amélie Grassi remains the only woman in the Class40 field in a stubborn sixth place.

Click here for the tracking and the intermediate results.

Rock 'n' Roll with "Alla Grande Pirelli" - Ambrogio Beccaria gives an insight into his world on the Atlantic: