#RorcSRBI / Ian Walker finished first of the Volvo Ocean 65 fleet : "We are on track" (ITW)

Back on dry land, Ian Walker speaks about smashing the Round Britain and Ireland record, finishing first of the Volvo Ocean 65 fleet - and what this means for Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing.

Credit : RORC/CNN Mainsail

Musandam-Oman Sail on top of the world after breaking Sevenstar Round Britain and Ireland Record by 16 minutes

Musandam-Oman Sail have set a new world record for sailing round Britain and Ireland after shaving 16 minutes off the current record and taking line honours in the 2014 Sevenstar Round Britain and Ireland Race after a nail-biting end to a remarkable three days.

Credit : M.Lloyd

Sevenstar Round Britain and Ireland race start postponed to Monday, Sidney Gavignet fully supports the decision

MOD70 trimaran, Musandam-Oman Sail, the Sultanate of Oman’s flagship campaign, welcomed the news this morning from the Sevenstar Round Britain and Ireland race committee that the start of the epic 1,800 nautical mile race would be postponed to 0900 on Monday morning due to conditions.

Credit : Lloyd Images

Artemis Ocean Racing breaks the Sevenstar Round Britain and Ireland Race IMOCA 60 record

Having crossed the Sevenstar Round Britain and Ireland Race finish line today (Monday 30th August) at 00h32’ 27’’ after 6 days 10 hours 32 minutes and 27 seconds at sea, Artemis Ocean Racing II managed to break the IMOCA 60 course record at the end of an “epic day of full-on sailing”, as Jonny Malbon said upon setting foot ashore.

Credit : P Eden / RORC

The Sevenstar Round Britain and Ireland Race is special for Artemis Ocean Racing, as its 2006 edition was the first event the team’s first IMOCA 60 (ex-Hexagon, later known as Artemis I) took part in - and incidentally won, with Jonny Malbon at the helm. And despite the “domestic” feel evoked by its course and appellation, it’s a gruelling competition with 1802 nautical miles to cover - that’s more than half of a transatlantic crossing - on a course that takes the sailors to the loneliness, the cold and the desolation of the Northern Hemisphere’s high latitudes.

Sevenstar round Britain and Ireland race / Teléfonica Azul Take 2nd Place

Volvo Open 70 Teléfonica Azul crossed the Royal Yacht Squadron Line to claim second place in the 2010 Sevenstar Round Britain and Ireland Race. Teléfonica Azul finished the race well inside the old record. They started the race like a bat out of hell, screaming down the Solent at over 25 knots, but a rigging problem meant that they were overtaken by Groupama and they never managed to catch them.

Sevenstar round Britain and Ireland race / First victory for Groupama 70

It was at 1126 hours BST on Sunday that Franck Cammas and his ten crew took victory in the Sevenstar Round Britain and Ireland off the Royal Yacht Squadron in Cowes on the Isle of Wight. By covering the 1,802 miles in 5 days 21 hours and 26 minutes at an average speed of 12.74 knots, the French crew considerably improved on the best time over this course which had previously been in the hands of the British sailors Dee Cafari and Sam Davies since 2009.

© Patrick Eden / RORC

Sevenstar round Britain and Ireland race / Heading Home

The leaders are literally at the other end of the course. At 1200 BST, Volvo Open 70, Groupama is just 65 miles from the Scilly Isles. They have chosen a course north of the rhumb line, presumably to take advantage of any new breeze that may emanate from the Bristol Channel. Teléfonica has gybed south and it is anticipated that Groupama will cover them. Groupama have 290 miles to go to the finish of the Sevenstar Round Britain and Ireland Race; Teléfonica are 20 miles behind. Both are expected to finish in Cowes by Sunday afternoon. Obviously this estimated time of arrival will be dependent on the wind strength.

Sevenstar round Britain and Ireland race / Teléfonica put the hammer down...

At 13:00 BST, Iker Martinez's Teléfonica Azul were in hot pursuit of their prey, Franck Cammas' Groupama. The Spanish Open Volvo 70 has shifted up a gear and is currently surfing down the west of Ireland, quicker than their French rivals, blasting along at up to 20 knots of boat speed. Groupama still lead the Sevenstar Round Britain and Ireland Race, but the gap has shrunk to 18 miles. The forecast going into tonight is for some big breeze to arrive on the west coast of Ireland. With just over 500 miles to go, the winner of this duel is highly likely to break the race record.

Sevenstar round Britain and Ireland race / Lonely Out in Space

At 14:00 BST the vast majority of the fleet were in the remotest corner of the North Sea, hundreds of miles from any city and well offshore. The baron coastline of northeast Scotland was the nearest landfall. In essence, they were very much out on their own.

Race leader Groupama had managed to struggle past the light winds around the Isle of Lewis and into fresher north easterly breeze. Getting to the breeze first means that they have opened up an 18 mile lead on rivals Telefónica Azul.

Groupama have taken pole position in the Sevenstar Round Britain and Ireland Race.

The web site tracker has them nearer to the finish than Telefonica Azul. It will have been a cold, wet night on board, with the 70-foot round the world race boats, smashing through the waves. The French team took a more westerly line than their Spanish rivals but may well fall behind them to round Muckle Flugga. The two carbon fibre speed machines are now locked into a duel to reach the most northern part of the course. Muckle Flugga, north of Unst in the Shetland Islands, is further north of the equator, than Cape Horn is south.

Credit : Yann Riou / Groupama

Sevenstar round Britain and Ireland race / High Road to Scotland

The Volvo Open 70, Telefonica Azul, is scorching along at a blistering speed. After the first 24 hours of the Sevenstar Round Britain and Ireland Race, the Spanish yacht has covered 440 miles of the 1,800 mile course.

Copyright Rick Tomlinson

Sevenstar round Britain and Ireland race / Born to be Wild

The Sevenstar Round Britain and Ireland Race exploded into action at 1400 local time under grey leaden skies and big breeze. ICAP Leopard and Telefónica Azul chose to set off from the outer distance mark, and it was a hair-raising sight as RORC Chief Executive, Eddie Warden Owen reports from the race course:

"It was a magnificent start, 25 knots from the southwest with gusts of up to 30 knots coming out of the Medina River, Spanish entry Telefónica was an impressive sight, the Volvo 70 is built to race at full tilt around the world and she carried her enormous spinnaker to blast past the 100 foot Leopard at over 25 knots. It was a really impressive sight to these huge machines blasting down the Solent leaving the rest of the 27-strong fleet in their wake."

IMOCA / Artemis Ocean Racing to compete in the Sevenstar Round Britain & Ireland Race

 Organised by the Royal Ocean Racing Club, the IMOCA 60 ‘Artemis Ocean Racing’ will be competing in the Sevenstar Round Britain and Ireland Race starting on Monday, 23rd August. The 1,802-nautical mile race departs the Royal Yacht Squadron start line (Cowes,UK) at 1400 BST, racing clockwise around Britain and Ireland.

Franck Cammas at the Sevenstar round Britain and Ireland race

Created in 1976 by the Royal Yacht Squadron, the Round Britain and Ireland has become a classic over the years. Though it was possible, during the first edition, to cover 1,800 miles (3,200 km) in six stages or without stopovers, today's race is run without stopovers, whatever the length of the competing boats, which ranges between 12 and 30 metres.

Credit : Y.Zedda

For the first time since the purchase of Groupama 70, Franck Cammas and his crew will be up against another VOR 70, she too preparing for the next Volvo Ocean Race: Telefonica Blue, skippered by the Spanish sailor Iker Martinez.