Race leader pulls into port

Thomas Coville's Sodebo, first victim in Challenge Mondial Assistance

After leading the Challenge Mondial fleet through the night this morning Thomas Coville's Sodebo has had to head for port to effect repairs. In a conversation with race HQ, Coville explained that the titanium shaft of the downhaul ram that attaches through the foredeck to the tack of the Solent had broken. Unable to achieve uff tension in this vital sail they are making for the boat's homeport of La Trinite-sur-Mer 100 miles away. They are due in at 1800GMT tonight.

At the noon radio session a very disappointed Thomas Coville said "the boat was going flat out last night and as we were leading the fleet it feels like treason. It was while sailing tack for tack with Belgacom that Sodebo suffered the damage - a problem that could well have caused the trimaran to dismast. The mast is currently held up by the trinquette stay and the halyard gennaker to make up for the breakage of this principal stay.

Currently Lalou Roucayrol's Banque Populaire and Jean-Luc Nelias on Belgacom are fighting it out for first place with Bayer Cropscience just 6 miles behind as the three boats cross the Bay of Biscay.

The boats are currently sailing in a 15-20 knot northwesterly wind but this is due to veer to the north and increase marginally over the course of this afternoon and evening - before decreasing tomorrow as a weak high pressure system forms just to the west of Cape Finistere.

Pos	Name	Lat	Long	SOG	COG	DTF	DTL
1	Banque Populaire	46 45.92' N	5 22.52' W	16.4	185	2421	0
2	Belgacom	46 25.86' N	5 34.92' W	14.2	195	2422	0.6
3	Bayer CropScience	46 23.94' N	5 19.38' W	14.4	182	2428	6.6
4	Géant	46 31.72' N	5 25.64' W	13.2	193	2442	21
5	Bonduelle	47 04.14' N	5 37.62' W	13.9	272	2446	24.6
6	Groupama	47 00.80' N	6 10.60' W	11.3	215	2448	26.8
7	Banque Covefi	47 49.14' N	5 27.60' W	15.8	185	2450	28.4
8	Gitana	47 12.84' N	4 59.76' W	12.8	198	2455	33.9
9	Foncia	47 35.94' N	6 24.18' W	9.7	268	2467	45.7
10	Sopra Group	47 21.96' N	4 47.92' W	13.4	189	2468	46.8
11	Sergio Tacchini	47 36.30' N	6 07.86' W	12.4	196	2469	47.9
12	Sodebo	47 20.88' N	3 31.56' W	21.6	88	2533	111