Emily Nagel and her Mirpuri Foundation Racing team-mates remained on course for class line honours on day three of the inaugural Ocean Race Europe yesterday.

The Portuguese-based team, led by helmsman Yoann Richomme, capitalised on the fast-reaching conditions in the fresh winds off the north-west tip of Spain to maintain pole position in the seven-boat one-design VO65 class.

At one stage they were moving along at over 21 knots before sailing into a high pressure system bringing lighter winds which slowed their progress as they approached the turning mark of the race.

Richomme’s team was last tracked travelling along at 12.5 knots and were located 694.4 nautical miles from the finish line in Cascais, Portugal.

Mirpuri Foundation Racing Team have led since the racing fleet set sail on the opening leg of the race from Lorient, France, on Saturday.

Bermudian sailor and naval architect Nagel is working mid bow on the team’s boat and comes with extensive offshore sailing experience, having also competed in the Rolex Sydney Hobart Race and Fastnet Race

The Netherlands’ AkzoNobel Ocean Racing, the team Nagel competed with in the 2018 Volvo Ocean Race, remain in second.

The Dutch entry managed to slightly close the gap on the leaders while putting more distance between themselves and third place boat, Team Childhood I, who are led by two-times America’s Cup winning helmsman Simeon Tienpon.

Sailing Poland is in fourth, followed by AmberSail-2 in fifth, Viva Mexico in sixth and The Austrian Ocean Race Project in seventh.

Speeds across the VO65 fleet have remained fairly even, with just ten miles separating the top five boats.

“It’s fascinating how the teams are so close,” Deimanté Jarmalaviciuté, who is the main trimmer on AmberSail-2, commented on the race’s official website.

“Even after like 25, 27 hours of racing, you wake up after your shift, you go on deck and you see the other teams so close to each other. And being in the ocean, it’s an amazing feeling.”

Meanwhile, the top three positions in the foiling IMOCA 60 class also remained intact yesterday.

French team LinkedOut still leads the pack over US entry 11th Hour Racing Team with Bureau Valle’e, also of France, in third.

The conditions are forecast to strengthen again as the fleet, who are expected to arrive in Portugal by noon tomorrow, make their way back from the turning mark which is a virtual waypoint out in the Atlantic.