CHRISTCHURCH, New Zealand (AP) — New Zealand won the home leg of the SailGP series on Sunday to take the overall lead from Australia, which collided with a mark in the day’s first fleet race and did not take another place in organization.
By winning the ninth leg of the series, New Zealand moved one point ahead of Australia in the championship standings with just two matches remaining in Bermuda and Halifax before the series finale in New York in June.
The final leg at Lyttelton Harbor near Christchurch in the South Island was condensed into three fleet races before New Zealand, France and Canada competed in the event final. Three fleet races were scheduled for the first day on Saturday, but none could sail due to the presence of endangered dolphins on the race course.
Lyttelton Harbor is the habitat of the endangered Hector’s dolphin and racing protocols prevented racing from taking place if dolphins were seen on or near the track. No dolphins affected the racng on Sunday.
New Zealand, France and Canada each won one of the fleet races they sailed on Sunday to advance to the final in which New Zealand beat France by 12 seconds.
Australia suffered damage when he collided with a mark near the start of the first match and was unable to continue in the match.
New Zealand sailed clear throughout the day, often choosing to race out of phase with the rest of the fleet to avoid the risk of collision.
There were multiple clashes in the first match which New Zealand won. New Zealand started at the back of the field in races two and three but showed speed to come through the field to fourth in the second race won by Canada and second in the third race won by France.
The third match was exciting as many teams fought for a place in the final. Only the top three teams compete in the final and the winner is crowned the tournament champion, receiving 10 points in the overall series standings.
France, Canada, Spain and Germany took an early lead in race three before New Zealand closed in fourth at gate five and eventually moved up to second.
New Zealand won the start in the final and took the lead along the way. Canada was second early but lost ground when it split with the fleet in the third of seven legs.
The race was watched by more than 22,000 spectators in the shore viewing area, making it the largest ticketed sailing event in history.
“It doesn’t get any better than this, a weekend win in a home game,” New Zealand winger Blair Tuke said. “Beautiful conditions, great crowd.
“After yesterday’s disappointment for everyone, we are so excited to put on a good show today. We said we would do it and we did.”
The race win was the third in a row for New Zealand driver Peter Burling who guided the New Zealand boat to first place in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. He missed the eighth match in Sydney on parental leave and New Zealand finished second in his absence in an event won by Australia.
The SailGP series is in its fourth year and features 10 teams racing identical high-tech F50 catamarans that can reach speeds of around 50 knots (57 mph).
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