Corrects 7th paragraph, to make clear Team SCA are first all-female team in 12 years to contest the race: Team SCA (Sam Davies\/GBR) were still doggedly battling the elements on Monday to reach their destination in Itaja\u00ed, south-east Brazil, more than 12 hours after the leaders had finished Leg 5 of the Volvo Ocean Race (full report below).<\/p>\n
– Three \u2018hits\u2019 but Swedish boat sails doggedly on<\/p>\n
– Dongfeng Racing Team motors on for Itaja\u00ed mast refit<\/p>\n
– Khalid set for return to victorious Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing<\/p>\n
ITAJA\u00cd, Brazil, April 6 \u2013 Team SCA (Sam Davies\/GBR) were still doggedly battling the elements on Monday to reach their destination in Itaja\u00ed, south-east Brazil, more than 12 hours after the leaders had finished Leg 5 of the Volvo Ocean Race.<\/p>\n
Rarely in the 41-year history of the race can a team have worked so hard to clinch points for fifth place.<\/p>\n
A week after crashing to their side in a Chinese gybe and damaging a key sail, the all-women crew found themselves toppled again after colliding into an unidentified object in the south Atlantic.<\/p>\n
That did some damage to their port rudder, yet their run of bad luck, which denied them a possible finish alongside leg winners Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing (Ian Walker\/GBR), MAPFRE (Iker Mart\u00ednez\/ESP), Team Alvimedica (Charlie Enright\/USA) and Team Brunel (Bouwe Bekking\/NED) on Sunday night, was not over yet.<\/p>\n
They suffered two further \u2018hits\u2019 in the dark \u2013 mercifully, causing little damage \u2013 before continuing on their way.<\/p>\n
By 0940 UTC on Monday, they had just over 400 nautical miles (nm) of the 6,766nm leg to sail, with an expected time of arrival in Itaja\u00ed of 1600 UTC on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
Team SCA\u2019s Onboard Reporter, Anna-Lena Elled (SWE), summed up one hell of a tough day at the office for the first all-female team to contest offshore sailing\u2019s most challenging race in 12 years:<\/p>\n
\u201cAs is so often the case, when you least expect something to happen it does and BOOM! we hit something with the port rudder,\u201d she wrote in her daily blog from the boat.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe boat turned around, tacked and capsized, and once again, we were on our side. The crew managed to right the situation quickly without any further damage, except on the rudder that got hit.<\/p>\n
\u201cA two-hour long process of surveying and attempting to restore the damaged parts followed before we could continue our journey towards the finish line again.<\/p>\n
\u201cA few hours later we had one more hit, this time in the keel – and before sunset another one. What are the odds?\u201d<\/p>\n
At least they had the consolation of knowing that they weren\u2019t alone in their misfortune during the longest and toughest leg in the 12th edition.<\/p>\n
Dongfeng Race Team (Charles Caudrelier\/FRA) were forced to pull out last week after the top of their mast fractured and a delivery crew is currently nursing the boat to Itaja\u00ed where they will have a new rig fitted.<\/p>\n
It will be a race against time to be ready for the start of Leg 6 to Newport, Rhode Island, which departs from Itaja\u00ed on April 19.<\/p>\n
Meantime, victors Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing were celebrating Sunday\u2019s epic Leg 5 victory, which leaves them seven points clear at the top of the standings, and front-runners for the IWC 24-hour Speed Record Challenge,\u00a0having covered 551nm during the stage from Auckland to Brazil.<\/p>\n
And there was more good news for skipper Ian Walker, with the crew\u2019s sole Emirati, Adil Khalid (UAE), once more back to full fitness having missed the previous two legs due to illness.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs part of my recovery plan, I stayed on Sir Bani Yas Island off the coast of Abu Dhabi, where I had a rigorous fitness regime. I did six hours in the gym every day and had a nutritionist and physical trainer on hand to monitor my progress,\u201d said Khalid.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was tough, but I\u2019m now fully cleared for action and right back up to the levels I have to be at to compete in the Volvo Ocean Race.\u201d<\/p>\n
via CORRECTED: \u2018The Undaunted\u2019 \u2013 Team SCA women battle on| Volvo Ocean Race 2014-2015<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Corrects 7th paragraph, to make clear Team SCA are first all-female team in 12 years to contest the race: Team SCA (Sam Davies\/GBR) were still doggedly battling the elements on Monday to reach their destination in Itaja\u00ed, south-east Brazil, more … Continue reading