Problems ignored by Parlier

Sailing

Yves Parlier was racing under bare poles but still making progress at 22 knots in the southern ocean yesterday as the leaders in the Vendee Globe non-stop singlehanded round the world race were hit by storms well south of the Cape of Good Hope on their way to the Kerguelen Islands turning point.

Parlier is now 370 miles behind Christophe Augin and falling further behind as he tries to repair his mainsail. No such problems for Britain's Pete Goss, the only competitor with a 50-footer, but now eighth with six 60-footers behind him, including the former leader Isabelle Autissier, who is in Cape Town fitting a new starboard rudder.

Going the other way and moving down to nearly 60 degrees south, enjoying nearly 20 hours of daylight but bitterly cold, the 14 boats in the BT Challenge are still led by Andy Hindley in Save the Children, who has an 11-mile advantage over Merfyn Owen in Global Teamwork.