Muscat: Strong winds on Day 5 of Sailing Arabia – The Tour 2021 handed the advantage to Team France as the debuting crew extended their lead over the fleet with four points. Averaging 15-20 knots all day, Team France won all three races while the trailing fleet toiled in the conditions.
Team DB Schenker remained in second place overall, Team Oman Sail third, Team Oman Investment Authority finished the Sur leg in fourth, Team Barcelo Mussanah Resort as the fifth and Team Nastro Rosa of Italy as sixth. Away from Team France’s dominance, the remaining podium positions during the day were shared throughout the fleet.
Oman Sail finished second in the coastal raid with Oman Investment Authority as third. Team Oman Investment Authority finished second in both in-port races but was later disqualified from the first race due to a collision.
Team DB Schenker finished third in the first in-port race and Nastro Rosa equalled their best result of The Tour so far when they finished as third in the second race. Antoine Rucard, the skipper of Team France, said, “Today the races were amazing. We began the day with the coastal race, just outside of the harbour. We turned by the traditional fishing boat, and the wind was very strong. We won the race after a good fight with the Oman Sail team. There were two stadium races with even stronger winds but we won them both. The competition is great; all of the Omani teams are really good. It is great to be fighting for the lead with them.” Musab al Hadi, the skipper of Team Oman Sail, said, “Today was a very long day, a big day for every team. The coastal race was long but close between the teams. We finished second which made the team happy. Then after that, we had an in-port race but suffered a collision on the start line so we were sinking, but we were strong and remained focused to finish the race. It was very dramatic but that is the sport, you have to accept it and move on to the next race. We lodged a protest against the team that damaged our boat and were given a redress to finish the day second overall.” Racing now shifts north to Marina Bandar Al Rowdha on 1 and 2 December 2021 for the second half of The Tour where there will be another two in-port races. Team France will be looking to solidify their position at the top while the rest of the fleet needs to gain ground on the leaders before the final leg in Muscat from 3-5 December 2021. Sailing Arabia – The Tour 2021 is run in full adherence to precautionary measures set by the Covid-19 Supreme Committee. –ONA
