And yet another Vendée sailor has to abandon his course after colliding with a "UFO" and bring his wrecked boat into a rapids harbour. Frenchman Thomas Ruyant and his yacht "Le Souffle du Nord pour Le Projet Imagine" are heading for New Zealand. The skipper and his boat collided with an "unidentified floating object" ("UFO") on Sunday afternoon. In very rough seas and winds of around 40 knots, Ruyant had noticed water ingress in the forecastle shortly after the collision, where he had stowed his sails.
Ruyant, a well-placed eighth in the race, had immediately informed the regatta management and prepared his safety equipment. The starboard rudder and the structure in the deck area were also damaged in the incident. The regatta managers contacted the New Zealand Sea Rescue Service and asked for help in case Ruyant's situation worsened.
The Frenchman has not yet asked for outside help. After the Cape Leeuwin passage, he wants to try to reach New Zealand under his own steam. Laurent Bourggués, Ruyant's technical project director, explained: "Thomas is endeavouring to reach New Zealand."
Earlier on Saturday evening, Frenchman Stéphane Le Diraison had already lost his mast and had to retire. After Tanguy de Lamotte, whose mast top had broken off, and the Japanese soloist Koji Shiraishi, who had lost the upper third of his rig, Le Diraison is the third skipper in the current race to suffer this misfortune. He is heading for the Australian harbour of Melbourne.
At the head of the field on course for Cape Horn, Armel Le Cléac'h had built up a lead of 439 nautical miles over "Hugo Boss" helmsman Alex Thomson on the 4th Advent. With 826 nautical miles, the Briton has a good lead over the Frenchman Paul Meilhat on "SMA". He in turn continues to fight a bow-to-bow duel with Jérémie Beyou on "Maitre Coq". The two compatriots were separated by just five nautical miles after 42 days at sea!
Tatjana Pokorny
Sports reporter
