The Ocean Race 2022-23 - 21 May 2023, Leg 5, Day 1 onboard Biotherm. Skipper Paul Meilhat checking the fleet to make a decision during Newport In-Port Race. © Anne Beauge / Biotherm / The Ocean Race

It’s 11th Hour Racing Team at the head of the fleet on Monday as the four racing IMOCAs push east into the Atlantic Ocean. 

After being squeezed between two Marine Mammal Exclusion Zones for much of Sunday night, the race course is beginning to open up now.

Check out the latest content from the boats

For American skipper Charlie Enright, it’s a narrow lead on the second day of the double-points leg to Aarhus, Denmark, with Team Malizia and Team Holcim-PRB directly behind. Biotherm has also closed the gap to just under 15 miles after falling behind at the start yesterday. 

“It’s been a nice start. We have the spinnaker up, but the wind is turning to the right so we will have to change to a flatter sail,” said Malizia skipper Boris Herrmann Sunday night. “We can see 11th Hour Racing Team over there, so it’s all very good. Quite gentle sailing.”

“The leaders touched the wind shifting forward first (out of Newport), and we were able to come back a bit. But then we fell into a light spot and they gained, but we are within about a mile of Malizia, so it’s good,” said Kevin Escoffier on Team Holcim-PRB.

Sea conditions could get worse this week as the boats move into a favourable Gulf Stream current that will be pushing against the northerly winds in the forecast. That type of wind against current usually pushes up the sea state dramatically. 

The latest positions are on the Race Tracker and the leaderboard is available here

The latest news is at www.theoceanrace.com and you can follow sailing’s greatest round-the-world challenge on Eurosport with every leg departure live and on-demand on discoveryplus.com or Eurosport.com

About The Ocean Race Since 1973, The Ocean Race has provided the ultimate test of a team and a human adventure like no other. For nearly 50 years, it has kept an almost mythical hold over some of the greatest sailors and been the proving ground for the legends of our sport. The 14th edition of The Ocean Race will start from Alicante, Spain on 15 January 2023, and will finish in Genova, Italy early in the summer of 2023. The race will visit nine iconic cities around the globe over a six-month...