Emily Nagel and Team AkzoNobel blazed their way into the Volvo Ocean Race history book during Leg Nine of the iconic race from Newport, Rhode Island to Cardiff, Wales.

The Dutch syndicate set two race records sailing in strong gales and tall seas, reaching speeds up to 30 knots as they rocketed across the Atlantic Ocean.

Bermuda sailor Nagel and her team-mates set a new Volvo Ocean 65 class 24-hour distance run of 588.10 nm last Friday to eclipse the previous VO65 record of 550.8 nm held by Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing.

Hours later they became the first team to break the 600 mile barrier inside of a 24-hour period after logging an extraordinary 602.51 miles, nearly the entire distance of both the Newport to Bermuda Race and Marion to Bermuda Race.

The previous record had stood at 596.6 miles and was held by the Volvo Open 70 Ericsson 4.

“Way cool to break the record on Bermuda Day,” Nagel said.

Simeon Tienpont, the team AkzoNobel skipper, added: “It’s great to be the fastest boat in the race, and especially in these conditions where we can really go fast quite safely.

“Big thanks to the shore crew for preparing the boat so well so that we have the confidence to really put the hammer down.”

The 23-year-old Nagel, who has a master’s degree in engineering with naval architecture, and worked full-time with SoftBank Team Japan during the America’s Cup in Bermuda last year, is living her dream of competing in the Volvo Ocean Race.

She serves as a trimmer on board her team’s 65ft, one-design ocean racer and has competed in six of the nine legs so far.

Meanwhile, Team AkzoNobel remained locked in a close battle with rivals Team Brunel for Leg Nine line honours yesterday. The boats were less than a mile apart 30-miles from the finish line with Team Brunel in front and were expected to make landfall before sunrise today.

Nagel and her team-mates started Leg Nine in fourth in the Volvo Ocean Race standings, 17-points behind leaders Mapfre. They are also fourth in the In-port Race Series, also led by Spanish syndicate Mapfre.