Extreme Sailing Series Act 3 - Teams prepare to go full pelt
by Extreme Sailing Series on 1 Jun 2012
The fleet last met in Qingdao, China for Act 2 - Extreme Sailing Series 2012 Lloyd Images
http://lloydimagesgallery.photoshelter.com/
Extreme Sailing Series™ Act 3 is being held in Istanbul from the 7th to the 10th June 2012. The Extreme 40s have started to arrive, the Race Village is being built and in one week the curtain will go up as the teams prepare to go full pelt.
The tight racecourse located at a new location at the entrance to the Bosphorus will ensure close and aggressive racing for the eight teams, and the consistent winds in Istanbul will make for some spectacular competition. With the Omega countdown clock now ticking, the teams have now turned their attentions to the task at hand – victory at Act 3.
Leigh McMillan and his Omani-flagged team The Wave, Muscat won the previous Act in Qingdao, China, with a race to spare and now have a slim three point advantage at the top of the Series leaderboard, with Oman Air, Groupe Edmond de Rothschild and Red Bull Sailing Team all tied on points behind them. Red Bull Sailing Team skipper Roman Hagara anticipates tough competition in Istanbul but is quietly confident in his team’s ability to better their position. 'We had a great regatta in China and our first podium finish this season. This is exactly what we were fighting for. It is the same goal for Istanbul, but of course we still have a victory on the plan for this season.'
Ian Williams and his British crew on GAC Pindar currently top the second half of the leaderboard, three points ahead of ZouLou, while SAP Extreme Sailing Team and Alinghi are tied on seven points at the foot of the leaderboard. Williams is hoping the team can emulate their performance on the Turkish waters from 2011 and narrow the gap on their rivals. 'Istanbul was the event that GAC Pindar started to climb the leaderboard last year and we hope that will prove to be the case again in 2012.'
In 2011 the public turned out in their hordes to see the Extreme 40s in action on Turkish waters for the first time, and Mr Kaan Ark, Chairman of Local Event Partner Euroasia Sports, is confident this years event will be even more prevalent. 'We’re very proud to host the Extreme Sailing Series in Istanbul once again. We will have some thrilling competitions lined up this year, in both the inshore and the open sea racing. Racing in this new area will attract even more crowds than last year and will add a new dimension to the organisation of the event. We warmly welcome all the crews to Istanbul.' The first day of Act 3 the teams will race on an ‘open water’ course ahead of the event opening up to the public on the second day (8th June) which will see the Extreme 40s race in close quarters right in front of the spectators through to the 10th June.
The Race Village will be located on the waterfront in Istanbul’s old town, with the breathtaking backdrop of the Blue Mosque and Saint Sophia. The Village will include live commentary in Turkish and English, a resident DJ and food stalls amongst other activities for public of all ages. Visitors can also peruse the Marinepool shop with merchandise from the Official Technical and Lifestyle Clothing Supplier to the Series. You can browse the official Extreme Sailing Series store online.
For the third Act this Series, fans can follow all the action online through the live multi-camera race coverage including onboard footage and expert commentary. Coverage will be streamed to the home page of the official event website during the stadium sailing days on the eighth, ninth and 10th June. Sunday’s coverage will also include the live final of the NeilPryde Racing Series. Read more about the NeilPryde Racing Series here.
The live coverage will be streamed at the following times:
Friday 8th June: 1400-1600 CET
Saturday 9th June: 1330-1630 CET
Sunday 10th June: 1400-1630 CET
(All times CET – Central European Time – GMT -2hr and local time EEST +1hr)
The online video coverage will be complemented by a live interactive blog from the race course, available from the start of Extreme Sailing Series website
If you want to link to this article then please use this URL: www.sail-world.com/97892
