It was a last-minute podium finish for Team Malizia: the international team led by British sailor Will Harris finished in third place in today’s In-Port race in Itajaí, Brazil.

The fleet of five IMOCA boats raced in light winds of 8 to 10 knots and flat seas, which meant that they were unable to get on their foils. 11th Hour Racing lead from start to finish, moving them to the top of the In-Port Race Series leaderboard. Biotherm came in second position, followed by Team Malizia in third who overtook Team Holcim-PRB just before the finish line. Guyot Environnement – Team Europe arrived in fifth position.

Team Malizia’s crew composed of skipper Will Harris (GBR), co-skipper Rosalin Kuiper (NED), Nico Lunven (FRA), Christopher Pratt (FRA),andAntoine Auriol (FRA/GER) as onboard reporter got off to a tricky start but fought their way back and finished on the podium after two laps of a rectangular inshore course.

“It was good to have this In-Port Race, it was our first test as a crew with Chris instead of Boris”, commented skipper Will Harris as he jumped off Malizia – Seaexplorer. “The conditions were really tricky, with no wind to begin with, and then luckily there was some breeze that built. We had a really tricky start of the race, we were pretty much the last ones off the line and after that it was really tough to come back, to find a gap through the other boats. You are really at a disadvantage if you are further behind but Nico and Chris who were up on deck checking things out did a really good job of finding a few gaps. We managed to get past Guyot Environnement – Team Europe and then Team Holcim-PRB at the finish, crossing the line in third place and ending up on the podium.”

Although the points of the In-Port Racing Series do not count in the overall race scoreboard, they are still important as they work as a tie-breaker mechanism. “We never gave up throughout the day, I’m really happy to already feel that fighting spirit from the crew, and to gain some points as a result”, added the youngest skipper of this year’s Ocean Race.

The crew will now rest in order to be ready for Sunday when they will set sail for a 5,500 nautical mile journey from Itajaí, Brazil, across the Equator, to Newport, USA. The Leg 4 Start is scheduled for Sunday 23 April 2023 at 1315 hours local time (1615 hours UTC, 1815 hours CEST).

© Ricardo Pinto / Team Malizia