Soldini up to second

Cat and mouse game continues in Quebec-St Malo

Positions at 1700GMT

Pos	Boat	Lat	Long	VMG	SOG	COG	DTF	DTL
	ORMA 60s
1	Groupama	46 56.16' N	59 18.00' W	9.2	9.9	117	2299	0
2	Tim Progetto Italia	46 56.84' N	59 08.28' W	11.6	11.6	95	2299	0.4
3	Sergio Tacchini	46 56.40' N	59 17.84' W	11	11	95	2305	6.9
4	Géant	46 57.00' N	59 21.64' W	4.9	6.4	134	2308	9.6
5	Foncia	47 00.52' N	59 26.32' W	3.1	3.1	101	2312	13
6	Banque Covefi	47 00.44' N	59 28.40' W	5.7	5.8	94	2313	14.4
7	Gitana XI	46 58.68' N	59 39.52' W	5.6	5.6	92	2320	21.8
8	Banque Populaire	46 56.68' N	59 41.76' W	5.1	5.1	93	2320	21.9
9	Sopra Group	46 58.64' N	59 43.80' W	4.7	7.1	143	2321	22.4
10	Sodebo	46 58.16' N	59 41.08' W	4.5	4.5	92	2321	22.9
11	Gitana X	46 54.68' N	59 54.24' W	6.7	11.1	146	2330	31.7
12	Médiatis-Région Aquitaine	48 37.64' N	64 08.84' W	4.4	5.8	151	2556	258
	50ft multis
1	Crêpes Whaou!	48 39.96' N	64 05.12' W	5.1	8.3	129	2512	0
2	Jean Stalaven	48 44.16' N	64 13.72' W	0.7	3.6	251	2516	3.5
3	Nootka	48 44.96' N	64 15.28' W	8.8	5	248	2517	4.9
4	GIFI	49 15.60' N	65 06.36' W	4.9	4.9	96	2575	62.8
	Open 50
1	Ciment St-Laurent	49 15.56' N	65 09.28' W	3.9	4	109	2577	0
2	Branec III	49 17.24' N	65 30.52' W	2.9	2.9	86	2591	14
3	Marina Fort Louis Ile de Saint	49 17.72' N	65 35.00' W	2.2	2.7	61	2594	16.9

Erratic conditions have created havoc throughout the fleet in the Transat Quebec Saint Malo. Géant was the new leader this afternoon at 1300 GMT with 1.1 miles on Groupama but the latest position reports show Groupama to have reclaimed the lead just 0.4 mile ahead of Giovanni Soldini's TIM Progetto Italia, the Italian boat positions slightly further north, performing remarkably well and showing great pace. The leaders are currently south of the southwestern tip of Newfoundland.

Most remarkable about the performance of the two front runners is that both have suffered rudder damage following collision with submerged objects.

Groupama is expected to moor out at sea in the shelter of one of the bays of the Frenchs to the south of Newfoundland, St Pierre et Miquelon. One of her crew will have to go into the water to replace the damaged port rudder without exterior assistance. If this is the case then it will not be considered as an official pitstop. The island is virtually on the exit route into the Atlantic.

Gitana X is believed to have hit something yesterday but did not suffer damage. Victims of broken battens at the start of the race, Banque Populaire and Sodebo have made great gains during the day after benefiting from a wind shift that surprisingly kicked in from the back of the fleet, causing the fleet to concertina. Steve Ravussin's Banque Covefi in particular has gained from this and is now back to just 5.1 miles from the leader.

This morning Vincent Riou aboard Géant, who was leading at the time, but has now dropped to fourth, was particularly animated when he spoke to race HQ. "We passed the Madeleine islands two hours ago. We've got 20 knots of southerly wind. We're going fast and really enjoying ourselves, sailing under solent and full main making 30 knots on flat seas. The conditions are superb and we're flying both hulls, upright on the leeward foil. Behind are Groupama and Sergio Tacchini. We saw Banque Covefi, Foncia and Gitana XI so it's still tightly grouped with the same regatta feel we've had since the start. The acceleration is something else and we've almost always had some wind. We expect to pass Saint Pierre et Miquelon at the end of the day. As regards the weather it doesn't look likely to be a very complicated passage. We'll pass north of the zone of the Azores High. The conditions are not extreme but they are interesting. A westerly wind will make the pace pretty quick in the Atlantic," now fast approaching.

This of course assumes that the high pressure system moves for in its present position the boats will have to sail through its centre before they can make it out into the Atlantic. Looking at the speeds of the boats - they have all plummeted over the course of the day from the speed that Riou was enthusing about while the boats in the middle of the fleet are bearly making 5 knots at present.

Although it is not born out by the data above, there should be more pressure at the back of the pack at the moment which should see the fleet closing up.

Currently 252 miles astern of the front runners, Yves Parlier on the radical catamaran Médiatis-Région Aquitaine, is counting on this. "We're currently tacking along the coast of Gaspésie," he said earlier. "We haven't had much luck as the wind has been fully aft while the ideal point of sail for the boat is a reach. We're trying to keep our spirits up and to reflect on the weather conditions which look particularly interesting," as will tomorrow's rankings no doubt...

Franck-Yves Escoffier on Crêpes Whaou! has seen his lead shrink to just 3.5 miles during the day with Jean Stalaven, and Mike Birch's Nootka (officially known as Bonjour Quebec!) completing the podium. The catamaran GIFI has dropped back to 62 miles behind the leader after turning round and round on herself in a windless zone last night while some of the 50ft monos were able to steal away on a vein of breeze just 2 or 300m away.

Meanwhile, Ciment St-Laurent has steamed into the lead of the Open 50s, with Branec III now up to second 14 miles behind and the originally pole-positioned Marina Fort Louis Ile de Saint Martin, down to third.