Delta Lloyd Safely Finishes Leg 3

Roberto Bermudez de Castro/ESP brought the crippled Delta Lloyd across the finish to complete leg three of the Volvo Ocean Race from Cochin in India, at 2007 GMT tonight, after 10 days, 10 hours, 7minutes and five seconds (elapsed time 10:10:7:5), more than 24 hours after Bouwe Bekking and Telefónica Blue scored their first leg win of the event. 

Roberto Bermudez, who stepped onto the boat for the first time in Cape Town as skipper, has had a tough leg, culminating with damage to the port keel ram structure on day six, 8 December.  The crew considered diverting to a nearer port, but were able to affect a repair sufficient to enable them to sail the remainder of the leg and finish under sail.  At the time of the incident, Bermudez said, “This is incredibly bad luck, but the crew is my first priority.  It is my job to bring them home safely.”  And that is exactly what the Spanish skipper has done. 

The shore team is ready to start repairing the damage, which should enable the boat to start the in-port race scheduled for 10 January. 

Meanwhile, Kosatka Team Russia today announced that it has suspended racing due to insufficient funds to continue the campaign.  The boat finished in seventh position yesterday.

The team has been actively approaching sponsors in recent months in a bid to secure enough financial support to continue, however no sponsorship has been forthcoming.  The team has no alternative other than to suspend racing until further financial support can be secured.

“From the outset, it was always a goal to bring commercial partners into the project,” explains Oleg Zherebtsov, the team principal. “Until now, I have financed the team with my own money, in advance of anticipated sponsorship funding.  By this stage in the campaign we had intended to find sponsorship, but this process has been impacted by the global economic situation.”

The next action on the water will be on 10 January with the UBS Challenge for the In-Port Race, followed by the start of leg four from Singapore to Qingdao in China on 18 January.