The Ocean Race Europe Leg 5 Day 8: The fleet pushes north towards Boka Bay
by The Ocean Race 15 Sep 00:28 AEST
14 September 2025
The battle for the podium positions on fifth and final stage of The Ocean Race Europe 2025 looks set to come to an exciting conclusion over the next 24 hours as the top five teams close in on the finish line in Boka Bay in Montenegro at the end of the around 1,600-nautical mile passage from Genova, Italy.
The top group entered the Adriatic Sea overnight after negotiating the Strait of Otranto between Italy on the left and Albania on the right, marking the first time boats from The Ocean Race have competed in the Adriatic.
Overall race-leader, Paul Meihat's Biotherm (FRA) continues to hold the advantage at the front of the pack but with second-placed Team Paprec Arkéa (FRA) - skippered by Yoann Richomme - opting to take a gamble on an eastern route along the Albanian coastline, just how the final 100 nm of this leg will play out is far from clear.
Behind the leading duo Rosalin Kuiper's Swiss-flagged entry Team Holcim - PRB and Boris Herrmann's Team Malizia (GER) are in a close quarters cat-and-mouse battle with each other as they make their way upwind in light to medium breezes with a somewhat bumpy sea state. Despite the comparatively benign weather the two crews are having to work hard as they try to get the upper hand in their private match race.
"You would think these are pretty steady, similar conditions, but it is not easy," explained Team Holcim - PRB sailor Carolijn Brouwer. "The wind is up and down between nine and 12 knots. When we are sailing upwind when we get to 12 knots we are at the upper range of the big sail we have on - the J0. The wind is incredibly shifty - 20 to 25 degrees sometimes.
"So you really need to be precise and on top of it all the time, to react to the differences in pressure and the shifts in the breeze. That requires a fair bit of concentration and you have to be paying attention all the time. The boat is definitely not sailing by itself and we need to work it hard to keep it fast. So that's what we do."
Meanwhile, British sailor Will Harris said the same was true aboard Team Malizia as the two crews kept a non-stop watch on each other's sail choice, boat speed, and angle.
"These are tricky conditions," he said. "Very bouncy and not very much wind, so it's hard to keep the boat consistently fast - it takes a lot of work."
The Allagrande Mapei crew, skippered by Ambrogio Beccaria (ITA), found themselves in catch up mode today after a breakaway move away from the pack towards the Italian coast yesterday failed to pay off and dropped them from third to fifth.
At 1400 CEST today leader Biotherm had a little over 70 nm left to race and held an 18 nm advantage Team Holcim - PRB in second, with Team Malizia less than a mile further back in third. Paprec Arkéa over in the east were in fourth, around one nm behind based on distance to sail. Fifth-placed Allagrande Mapei have a 20 nm deficit to make up to get back in contention for a podium place.
For Biotherm, any result in a podium position would secure them more than enough points to win The Ocean Race Europe ahead of the Coastal Race on Saturday.
Meanwhile, the crew of Canada Ocean Racing - Be Water Positive, skippered on this leg by Pip Hare, will be on full alert for an attack from Alan Roura's Team AMAALA (SUI/KSA) who, after being more than 100 miles behind, have in the last 24 hours closed up to within 13 nm.
Best estimates based on weather routing suggest an arrival window for the first boat in Boka Bay of between 0300 and 0500 CEST.