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Swiss team won the Extreme Sailing Series in St. Petersburg

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The 5th round of Extreme Sailing Series finished in St. Petersburg. According to the results of 24 races Swiss Alinghi became the winner of the stage.

Danish SAP Extreme was the leader of the first day of the Extreme Sailing Series 5 round in St. Petersburg. Oman Air which topped the overall standings was in second place due to an unfortunate collision with a buoy. By the second day of the competition Morgan Larson's team managed to eliminate technical difficulties caused by the collision and again show all they can do: the boat, flying the flag of Oman, finished in the top three in all but two races. The result is victory. Oman Air's main rivals, Switzerland's Alinghi, held on to second place.

«We don't forget about the other teams - they are all strong and each can make our position worse," said Arno Psarofagis, the 27-year-old Alinghi skipper, "but before each race we look at our own course, where we can go and where we don't want to be, and go our own way. We don't really feel pressure from the other teams. If they spend their time looking at us, that's great, but we don't look at them».

The second day for the Russian team was inconsistent. As the day before, Gazprom Team Russia achieved better results in the first half of the day than it did towards the end of the race. Already in the second race Phil Robertson's team finished first, and then two more times in the top three.

«The results of the day were mixed: we got our first win on home water, we were in the top three twice, but on the other hand we finished penultimate several times. Just like the day before, full courses and tack changes on full courses are an underdeveloped element of maneuvering in the race. Tomorrow is the most important day of the stage for us. We have to determine which line in the final standings we qualify for. Our chances are not bad despite the fact that we are now statistically the last 15 points separating the seventh team from the first three. For such dynamic races it is very insignificant gap», - said the skipper of the Russian team Phil Robertson.

On the third day of the 5th Extreme Sailing Series the Swiss Alinghi managed to overtake Oman Air with a steady performance even in the choppy light breeze and strong currents that made steering the GC32s difficult on Saturday. For Oman Air it was the worst day of the 5th act with only two races out of seven they managed to break into the top three. In the third race of the day, the team received a 45-second penalty for blocking Gazprom Team Russia's boat and automatically found themselves at the very tail of the race.

The other leaders of the overall standings, Red Bull Sailing Team, had a successful third day of the fifth stage: twice they came first and two more times they were in the top three.

Gazprom Team Russia managed to take the first place in the fourth race of the third day and thus came close to their closest rivals, Sail Portugal - Visit Madeira, who were in the fifth place after all the races of the fifth stage.

Alinghi of Switzerland started the decisive day of stage 5 with a minimal advantage over their main rivals, the overall leaders of the Oman Air standings.

The teams came to the final race of the stage with equal amount of points. The winner had to be decided in the most exciting battle of the season.

Alinghi took the lead at the start of the decisive race as they rounded the first mark with a small advantage over their rivals. Oman Air chased the Swiss downwind, but were unable to find a clear path between the fleet boats to the bottom gate. As the race progressed, Alinghi managed to consolidate their advantage and win stage 5.

There were 24 races over four days of competition in St. Petersburg. According to SAP analysts, Alinghi showed better results at the start, made fewer manoeuvres and 15 times found themselves on the podium, including 8 times in first place.

«Alinghi got off to a great start, went a bit faster, took the lead and did not look back, so this win is a credit to these guys," said Oman Air skipper Morgan Larson. - 'Arno is a rising star and a great talent at running these boats and he has a solid team. But I know how they work and I know what it takes to beat them. We think we competed very well today and if we keep it up we'll win next time».

Gazprom Team Russia finished second in the last race of the 5th act, thanks to which the team managed to pass Sail Portugal-Visit Madeira and took the sixth place by the end of the stage.

In the general standings Alinghi is now in second place. Their success in St. Petersburg helped them get ahead of Red Bull Sailing Team, who were 1 point behind them, and slightly closer to the leaders of Oman Air, who are now 5 points ahead of them.

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