Joschke into the lead

As conditions get lumpy in the Figaro fleet's Cap Istanbul race

A stormy low is currently battering the Figaro sailors competing in the Cap Istanbul race as they negotiate Greece and the Ionian Seain NNEerly winds of 30 knots, gusting to 35. The solo sailors are continuing to make headway towards Antikythira, an island situated to the north-west of Crete where there is a compulsory passage mark en route Aghios Nikolaos and the end of this third leg. In the conditions unexpectedly it is former Mini sailor Isabelle Joschke on Synergie who has taken the lead in the lumpy conditions .

At 0800 this morning, there was an 18-20 knot breeze and the sun was just momentarily pierced through the thick cloud mass. At this point between Sicily and Crete two Figaros were neck and neck: François Gabart on Espoir Région Bretagne and Gildas Morvan on Cercle Vert.

Gildas Morvan, set the scene: “I came here for the sun and the land and seascapes - they made a mistake on this voyage; I didn’t expect to find myself back in Brittany! Seriously though, last night was very hard in some fairly difficult sailing conditions; in fact it was pretty hellish. We were expecting to have more of a WSWerly but instead we’ve got the wind on the nose. It’s still not easy to know what’s going to happen. All’s well on board though - the southerly option has worked out quite well. I’m satisfied with my position and am getting the boat making headway as quickly as possible.”

Since then Joschke has pulled into the lead. At 31, Joschke is competing in her first season in the Figaro and has a fiercely competitive spirit, boosted by some solid offshore experience in the Mini and is leading a group of big names from the Figaro class: Thierry Chabagny ( Suzuki Automobiles), Erwan Tabarly ( Athema) as well as Gildas Morvan.

However a threatening group is currently powering in from the north who have been sailing down the direct route to the finish line. At the 1600 ranking, Christopher Pratt ( DCNS 97), Nicolas Troussel ( Financo), Romain Attanasio ( DCNS 62), Marc Emig ( Capitol), as well as Gildas Mahé ( Le Comptoir Immobilier) had closed the leaders down to around ten miles. Boosted by a more favourable wind angle they’re now making 7-7.5 knots, while Joschke and those to the south are going at 6-6.5 knots. There looks to be gridlock as the fleet pass the Antikythira gate, with the frontrunners set to pass through it early tomorrow morning.