Jury announces verdict after crash
Ocean Race Gets “Wonderful Winner”
06/29/2023, 1:39 p.m
The 11th Hour Racing Team is finally crowned the winner of the Ocean Race at the green table. After the crash through no fault of their own, the US crew received a bonus of four points at the beginning of the final 7th stage of the around-the-world regatta.
The US team 11th Hour Racing around the sailor Charlie Enright won the 14th Ocean Race. The organizers announced this after a jury decision. The now late triumph was preceded by a nail-biter at the green table. A crash caused by Team Guyot just after the start of the final stage in The Hague slowed the American leaders to three consecutive stage wins. The team could no longer contest the last part of the race to Genoa with the broken boat. 11th Hour Racing had filed an application for compensation for this, which the international jury of the race around the world approved.
With four more points, 11th Hour Racing was transferred the average value of the performances on stages one to six to the ocean race final account. With a total of 37 points, Enright and his team secured the trophy ahead of the Swiss team Holcim-PRB (34 points) and Team Malizia (32) with German sailor Boris Herrmann. The French team Biotherm (23) came in fourth ahead of the Guyot team with two points.
Those who caused the collision had abandoned the final stage out of respect for 11th Hour Racing. Your boat is already back in the home port of Les Sables-d’Olonne. Nevertheless, team manager Jens Kuphal, skipper Benjamin Dutreux and co-skipper Robert Stanjek are in Genoa for the final. “We warmly congratulate 11th Hour Racing. We are very happy that such a fair judgment was made here,” said Kuphal. Team Malizia’s skipper Herrmann said: “We are all very relieved that the jury didn’t deliver any more surprises here. It all seemed very harmonious. Even Holcim-PRB said at the hearing that 11th Hour Racing should get the redress. We have a wonderful winner for this ocean race!”
The winning team was still at sea on the day of the decision because the transfer had taken longer after the repairs in The Hague. 11th Hour Racing is expected in Genoa late Thursday afternoon. The awards ceremony is scheduled for 6 p.m. before the 14th edition of the sea marathon ends on July 1st with the last port race in Italy. However, the race has no meaning for the overall victory.