With skipper Bouwe Bekking at the helm, Team Brunel grab second leg lead in Volvo Ocean Race

Team Brunel finished third behind Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing's Azzam on Leg 1 from Alicante to Cape Town and on Sunday, they edged into a three-mile lead from Chinese boat Dongfeng Race Team in the next stage.

Team Brunel, left, skippered by Bouwe Bekking from the Netherlands, has grabbed the lead during the second leg to Abu Dhabi from Cape Town, South Africa in the Volvo Ocean Race. EPA/NIC BOTHMA

ALICANTE // Dutch skipper Bouwe Bekking, who has been trying to win the Volvo Ocean Race for nearly 30 years, snatched the second leg lead on Sunday.

Bekking, 51, is the oldest skipper in the fleet and is competing in offshore sailing’s most prestigious event for a record-equaling seventh time after first taking part in the 1985-86 edition, formerly the Whitbread Round the World Race.

He has finished second and third but never won and said before setting off in Alicante, Spain, last month: “Only winning will do this time.”

His Team Brunel crew responded by finishing third behind Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing on Leg 1 from Alicante to Cape Town and on Sunday they edged into a three-mile lead from Chinese boat Dongfeng Race Team in the next stage.

The seven-strong fleet is still tightly bunched on the 5,200-nautical mile route from Cape Town to Abu Dhabi that is expected to take three weeks to complete, depending on the weather.

Only 53 nautical miles separates first to last, the Swedish all-women crew of Team SCA, with just over 4,300 nautical miles to go.

Mapfre of Spain is third, ahead of Team Alvimedica (Turkey/U.S.), Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing and Team Vestas Wind (Denmark).

The leg is one of the most challenging in the 41-year-old event. Before the teams left South Africa on Wednesday, there were warnings of cyclones, tropical storms and icebergs on the stage that crosses the Southern and Indian oceans.

The race covers 38,739 nautical miles and takes nine months to complete, visiting 11 ports and every continent. It finishes in Gothenburg, Sweden, on June 27.

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