Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing, ADOR, held off the challenges of three Volvo Ocean Race, VOR, rivals to finish second in a thrilling final sprint for the Leg 3 finish line in Sanya, China, completing a hat-trick of podium finishes so far in the round-the-world race.
Azzam , meaning ‘determination' in Arabic, fended off the close attentions of Team Alvimedica, MAPFRE and Team Brunel to claim the runners-up spot behind runaway winners Dongfeng Race Team from China.
The team, led by double Olympic silver medallist Ian Walker, now has six race points, putting them in second place overall in the epic, nine-month race, one point behind Dongfeng, who was first into its homeport by a margin of 3 hours19 minutes.
For the first time in the team's two VOR challenges, ADOR came out top in the IWC Schaffhausen 24-hour Speed Record Challenge for Leg 3, after recording the longest run, 337.7 miles, for a 24-hour period en route from Abu Dhabi to China.
The Abu Dhabi Tourism and Culture Authority-backed team, that has also claimed podium finishes in the three in-port races so far, crossed the Leg 3 finish line in Sanya at 10:50am local time on Tuesday, January 27th after a little over 23 days of non-stop racing.
Despite having to settle for second place, Walker said he and the crew were pleased with the result, which came after three weeks of what he said had been the tightest racing he had ever experienced.
ADOR led the six-boat fleet out of its homeport of Abu Dhabi on January 3rd but lost the lead to the Chinese crew in light downwind conditions in the Gulf of Oman. Walker's men used the next week of close-quarters sailing to observe their rivals, fine-tuning Azzam as they raced. By the time the fleet made the left turn around the southern tip of Sri Lanka, ADOR was back on terms with the fleet.
ADOR faces a quick turnaround in Sanya with fewer than two weeks to get ready before the Sanya In-Port Race on February 7th when the crew want to improve on their third place result during the 2011-12 VOR. The very next day, February 8th, they will set out from Sanya on Leg 4, a 5,264-nautical mile passage to Auckland, New Zealand.
Source: WAM