Is leading yacht 'Armel Le Cléac’h' (Banque Populaire) through the Doldrums already? You might think so looking at the speeds.
Latest single-handed round-the-world race news of leading yachts on the ninth day:
Earlier Le Cléac’h was making just 1.8 knots but now he’s flying along at 9.1 knots and has headed south-west.
In the only change since the last ranking at 1600hrs (French time), Jean-Pierre Dick (Virbac-Paprec 3) moved past Francois Gabart (Macif) into second – albeit with only 0.9 miles between them - and was averaging 5 knots compared to Gabart’s 3.3.
If Cléac’h is through, the race to catch the first low-pressure weather system south into the Roaring 40s is on.
64 miles behind the leader Alex Thomson (Hugo Boss) is hot on the tail of Vincent Riou (PRB) and can probably see him just 0.9 miles away.