Members ’ News
She was soon part of the crew and part of a new initiative to make women an integral part of the Volvo Ocean Race , one of the world ’ s most extreme and prestigious sailing events . The move is also aimed at attracting more female fans to a sport whose base of support remains predominantly male .
The around-the-world race , formerly known as the Whitbread , was first held in 1973 , but this is the first time the rules allow a team to race with a larger crew if it sails with a mixed-gender crew instead of an all-male one .
Vestas 11th Hour Racing have won Leg 1 of the Volvo Ocean Race , crossing the finish line in the River Tagus in Lisbon , Portugal on Saturday afternoon .
It ' s a tremendous victory for American skipper Charlie Enright and his team , who earn 8 points for their efforts ( including a one point ' bonus ' for winning the leg ).
It wasn ' t easy . The wind shut down on the final approach , and an early morning lead of 34-nautical miles over secondplaced MAPFRE was whittled down to 10-miles , with the finish in sight , but the current in the river even pushing the leaders back out to sea in some of the lulls .
But the crew on the Vestas boat held their nerve , tacking first up and then down , zigzagging towards the line , into agonisingly light headwinds . Well done Stacey ! Here ’ s to Race 2 .
Leg 1 – Results – Saturday 28 October ( Day 7 ) - 14:09 UTC
1 . Vestas 11th Hour Racing -- FINISHED -- 14:08.45 UTC 2 . MAPFRE + 9.3 nm 3 . Dongfeng Race Team + 20.3 4 . team AkzoNobel + 24.1 5 . Sun Hung Kai / Scallywag + 44.2 6 . Team Brunel + 66.4 7 . Turn the Tide on Plastic + 67.3