2026 CIC Med Channel Race Day 5

2026 CIC Med Channel Race © Jean-Marie Liot / CIC Med Race

Chasing towards the Balearic Islands

The Swiss Class40 No. 134 STELLA NOVA, skippered by Omar Naas and Louis Torreilles, crossed the southern Sardinia ranking gate in first place yesterday evening at 11:28 PM French time. It was followed 2 hours and 38 minutes later by No. 168 RDT LOGISTIC OCEAN CONNECT, then 3 hours and 21 minutes later by No. 135 AQUAMARIN, and 18 minutes after that by No. 142 PHARE 40. It's safe to say the battle for the top spots is fierce.

As of 08:00 this morning, No. 155 FLAMINGO ROSSO is about to cross the gate, leaving only No. 98 to pass QWANZA - PROVITEQ. On the fifth day of the race, the leaders had already covered 657 miles. After a long upwind leg along the east coast of Sardinia and rounding the firing range south of the island, the competitors are now embarking on a long downwind leg towards the island of Menorca in the Balearic Islands, the next ranking point.

The top four competitors are within 18 miles of each other and, to gain a better position on the current leg, are regularly repositioning themselves towards the southern Mediterranean. A beautiful journey that continues past Marseille, the Var coast, Corsica, Sardinia, and now a fleet 70 miles north of the Algerian coast.

No more upwind sailing, finally!

It was around 12:00 yesterday that the first Class40 rounded the southeast corner of the firing range of the vast San Lorenzo range, which is active this May. The end of a long upwind leg since leaving Marseille, and finally, the chance to take the helm, rest the boat and the skippers. The race is intense, engaging, demanding—exactly what one would expect from this 1,000-mile race format, completed in a shortened week.

The sporting intensity is all the greater on this type of offshore course, which is quite rare in the Mediterranean. It is on this image of sporting grail that the image of its big sister in Normandy, the CIC Normandy Channel Race, was built.

Menorca, the new holy grail

200 miles ahead, the island of Menorca will be the last ranking marker before the final leg to Marseille. The favorable downwind conditions should continue until the finish, offering a more enjoyable second half of the race for the crews. The Menorca mark should be reached tomorrow late morning, and the current forecasts, still challenging in the Mediterranean with very changeable conditions, predict an arrival in Marseille on Saturday afternoon.

Will the competitors be greeted with the first notes of the EUROPA FESTIVAL, which shares the J4 esplanade site with the race? Find out this weekend.

To access the crew presentations: www.med-race.com/les-equipages

To follow the race on the map (a position update every 15 minutes): www.med-race.com/suivre-la-course

Website: www.med-race.com