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Eleonora 2 leads the ARC+ fleet into Saint Lucia



Today Saint Lucia joyously welcomed the first arrival of the ARC+ fleet, Alubat Cignale 18 Eleonora 2 after a fast 2100NM passage from Mindelo, Cape Verde. Crossing the finish line at 07:38:46 local time crew on board were in great spirits having enjoyed their 12 days at sea and are now looking forward to experiencing the delights of the Caribbean. 

The truly international crew on board Eleonora 2 includes sailors from Russia, Italy, France, Colombia, Estonia, Israel and United States and they have enjoyed a smooth passage since leaving, with almost text-book NE tradewind conditions most of the way from Mindelo. In fact, they were so busy sailing they had little time to participate in daily SSB radio net, 'with 7 nationalities onboard, we had our own international net onboard!' admitted crew member Amadeo Sorrentino.

As Eleonora 2 sailed across the ARC+ finish line this morning, the crew were congratulated by ARC Rally Control who then assisted them to their berth inside IGY Rodney Bay Marina. Once lying safely alongside the dock, all the crew were delighted to have arrived, ‘I was in Saint Lucia 22 years ago for the first Europa round the world rally and it is really special to have returned here and even better to be the first boat to arrive!' said Amadeo, 'All the other crew members have also been to Saint Lucia before and so we all have the feeling of coming back home.’ 

IGY General Manager Simon Bryan, IGY Operational Manager Sean Devaux, IGY Events Manager Alana Mathurin as well as Marie-Ange Williams representing Saint Lucia Tourist Board were all waiting on the pontoon to welcome the ARC+ first arrival who were promptly presented with a glass of ice-cold Saint Lucian style rum punch. ‘We feel a bit tired, mentally and physically, but arriving and being the first definitely gives us a buzz to continue the day. After the great taste of rum punch, we are very happy!’ beamed Amadeo. 

Their closest rival, Jeanneau 57 T&T is set to follow them across the line some 6 hours behind – a remarkably close finish after more than 2000NM of ocean sailing. The French 57 footer had previously beaten Eleonora 2 on the first leg of ARC+ which departed Las Palmas de Gran Canaria on 9 November and sailed to the Mindelo on the island of Sao Vincente in the Cape Verdes.

Although behind their friendly rival, skipper of T&T Dirk Martens was delighted to approach Saint Lucia’s shores, ‘The hope vanished for us to arrive first once we lost our spinnaker, but 2nd place is still great. Although for us, that is not the most important part: we have truly enjoyed a blissful journey. Sometimes exciting, sometimes frightening especially if we ended up in a squall, but compensated by the beautiful sun rising and setting, the thousands of flying fish, the birds in the middle of the ocean suddenly flying dolphins, whales we saw. The richest experience has been the human aspect, with five of us on a small yacht together is not easy yet it has been extremely enriching and thankfully we have managed without tensions. Overall it has been a fantastic experience!

Further arrivals are expected throughout the week at IGY Rodney Bay Marina. There are 12 catamarans in the ARC+ fleet and it’s neck and neck for the leaders of the Multihull Division who after 12 days at sea may be crossing the finish line within minutes of one another if conditions hold. Follow the fleet tracker for the latest positions and estimated finish times.


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