Concertina

Leaders caught in light winds in Challenge Mondial Assistance

Pos	Boat	Lat	Long	SOG	COG	Date/Time	DTF	DTL
1	Banque Populaire	37 49.92' N	9 29.80' E	7.2	116	17/05/2003 10:00	907.5	0
2	Groupama	37 32.56' N	9 20.04' E	8	107	17/05/2003 10:00	911.9	4.4
3	Géant	37 46.40' N	8 37.80' E	15	88	17/05/2003 10:00	950.7	43.2
4	Bayer CropScience	37 32.24' N	8 13.96' E	19.2	87	17/05/2003 09:30	959.7	52.2
5	Bonduelle	37 27.12' N	7 11.36' E	9.4	96	17/05/2003 09:30	1009	101.5
6	Sergio Tacchini	37 17.36' N	3 46.16' E	10.5	80	17/05/2003 10:00	1177.4	269.9
7	Sodebo	37 00.42' N	3 04.50' E	15.7	71	17/05/2003 08:00	1183.7	276.3
8	Banque Covefi	36 57.12' N	3 12.60' E	14	70	17/05/2003 08:34	1187.9	280.4
9	Sopra Group	36 37.56' N	1 10.12' E	7.1	55	17/05/2003 10:00	1303.6	396.1

As the table above shows, the nine remaining 60ft trimarans in the Challenge Mondial Assistance fleet have divided into three separate groups with Banque Populaire and Groupama still locked in battle for first place. In fact the two boats have taken very different routes over the last 24 hours - Groupama close in to the coast (they pulled in yesterday to fix their Solent), while Vendee Globe navigator Yves Parlier has taken Banque Populaire on a long tack to the north and back again - upwind, but at least there is some wind here.

However as the speed over the ground figures for the leaders indicates there is precious little wind where they are (currently off the north coast of Africa, to the south of Sardinia) - bang in the middle of the weak area of low pressure and this has allowed those astern - particularly Geant and Bayer CropScience in third and fourth to make up some ground on them (at present they are sailing more than twice as fast...)

This situation may well reverse itself over the course of today. Forecast charts indicate that the low will become stationary in which case the frontrunners may be released from its clutches while those astern fall into its trap. However the various navigators deal with this high, perhaps going inshore to the Algerian coast to look for local thermal breezes this afternoon, will be interesting to watch.

Yesterday afternoon Lionel Lemonchois' Gitana X officially retired following the breaking of her daggerboard.

Below: the righting of Alain Gautier's Foncia took place yesterday in Cascais. To read Ellen MacArthur's comments about her capsize - click here