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A section of the mast track came unglued from
the mast about five days ago and while the team had managed to
keep racing with jury-rig solutions, skipper Xabi Fernandez
decided to suspend racing to make proper repairs.
The yacht was about six miles west of Cape Horn when they
decided to suspend racing, organizers said. They were about
2,000 miles from the finish line.
"The penalty for suspending racing is that you must remain out
of the race for a minimum of 12 hours, and return to the same
location where you suspended before resuming the race,"
organizers said in a statement.
"Given the speed of the other boats, this latest development has
the potential to knock the overall race leader back
significantly."
All the other yachts, except for Sun Hung Kai/Scallywag, had
rounded Cape Horn with Team Brunel first around the landmark
about two hours ahead of Vestas.
"Well, we are finally around that Cape Horn," Brunel skipper
Bouwe Bekking said. "It didn't come easy this leg, as everybody
knows, it was a windy one.
"It's like a mental milestone, you're coming from the Southern
Ocean and every mile you sail north the weather gets warmer.
"It's a magical picture and a highlight for every sailor."
Sun Hung Kai/Scallywag had withdrawn from the leg after one of
their crew John Fisher was presumed lost at sea after he fell
overboard on Monday.
The race started from Alicante, Spain, on Oct. 22 and covers
45,000 nautical miles (83,000 km) around the world, featuring a
total of 12 host ports. It ends in The Hague, Netherlands, at
the end of June.
(Reporting by Greg Stutchbury in Wellington; Editing by Amlan
Chakraborty)
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