Two race victories in the final day in Cardiff amid challenging wind and intermittent rain showers gave the team much to cheer, but, ultimately, SAP's win in the final double-pointer race denied Alinghi a place on the Act 3 podium, with the Danish team securing the bonus points to pip the team to third. Oman Air deservedly took first place, reward for their dominance over the course of the four days of sailing, and a result that leaves them three points clear of Alinghi at the top of the series leaderboard. Act 4 in Hamburg, beginning on the 28th July, gives the team the first of the five remaining opportunities to make up the gap. Allez Alinghi!

It was a mixed bag for Alinghi on day three in Wales, with a race win countered by a last place finish and matched by several bouts of bad luck that sees the team slip to fifth place in the Act standings. The day could be summed up by the first race, which saw the team punished by a penalty having rounded the bottom gate in first position. The penalty stood, but the team bounced back with a great start by the pin in race two, keeping the lead until the finish line. Unfortunately, the rest of the racing was not to prove as successful, with a challenging day summed up in the final race when one of the team’s rudders gave way halfway around the course. Still, repairs will be made and the team moves onto the final day!

Strong winds in Cardiff bay on day two in the 2016 Extreme Sailing Series gave hope for an exciting day of racing and the early promise was more than fulfilled, with the boats reaching speeds of 35 knots and up towards the end of the day. Indeed, such were the conditions that the Committee had to rule in the day's seventh race that gennakers should not be deployed. It made for exciting and close racing, though, and Alinghi got off to a nice start, snatching second place in race 1 on the line from Act leaders, Oman. That and two very nice wins in races seven and eight - both sealed after fantastic starts - meant that the team move up one place into third on the Act leaderboard. Continue that kind of progression over the next two days in Wales and Alinghi are right in it.

Having delivered exciting wind conditions in the past, hopes were high for Act III of the 2016 Extreme Sailing Series in Cardiff and day one did not disappoint, with winds of up to twenty knots blowing across the tight course. There were eight races sailed and it was very much Oman Air’s day, with the team scoring five wins to lead the fleet into day two. Alinghi had a mixed day, but will be greatly encouraged by their performance in race six when, having nailed the start, they maintained the lead until the finish line. More of the same tomorrow, please!

A seventh win in this iconic race proved elusive for Alinghi, who were overtaken by Ladycat on the home leg. The team had taken the lead of the race as the fleet reached Evian and, after over four hours of racing, it rounded the turning mark at Le Bouveret in first place, with the eventual winners three minutes behind. Downwind from there things looked good but, as we approached the transition the wind decreased, enabling Ladycat to make up the difference. A series of jibes kept it close until, after a faked one, the eventual winners crossed us. With both teams close, Ladycat hit the headwind and, from Yvoire, led. It was a position that they'd keep until the finish line which was crossed in just over eight and half hours from the starting gun. Alinghi were just four minutes behind. Congratulations to the winners and onto the next one. ALLEZ ALINGHI!

Once again, the wind – or relative lack of it - on Lake Geneva proved troublesome for the race committee today in the D35 Championship, but to their great credit two races were run once the breeze around Nyon picked-up. It was something of a fillip, given the rest of the weekend’s frustrations, that Alinghi stormed the first of the two races. Having led at the upper gate, the team maintained the first position until the finish line. Unfortunately, the second race, encumbered by a bad starting position, was less successful. This, combined with the other results from other days, put Alinghi in seventh position overall. The team will be looking to tak the form of race 1, rather than 2, to next weekend for the big one – the Bol d’Or. Check back here for updates on the epic race up the Lake – and back!

After over four hours of racing in the Genève-Rolle-Genève, many of which saw the team leading the fleet, Alinghi had to settle for fourth place in today’s sprint up the lake and back.  Off the start, Team Tilt and Zen headed for the Swiss shore and took the lead, but we gybe’d twice towards the centre of the lake to catch the building wind. By the time the team reached Dully, Alinghi had passed the two leaders and struck out for the front. The lead was maintained as the mark in Rolle was rounded and it was looking good. However, after rounding that turning mark, and with the fleet heading towards the French shore, things got more complicated, with clouds building overhead as the boats approached Nyon, with shifting winds making it very close. Approaching Versoix, Alinghi led on the Swiss side, but as the lake narrowed the fleet converged. Still, the team maintained the lead until a series of pulsing breezes made the 1-2-3 change time after time, keeping the fleet packed. So close were the boats that only just over a minute separated them all at the finish line, with Alinghi having to settle for fourth. A great day of racing…

It was somewhat of a frustrating day on the lake at Versoix in the D35 Championship: frustrating for the fleet as a whole that a lack of wind meant only two races were sailed; and frustrating for Alinghi that when the wind did arrive - albeit with only five knots - unfortunate pockets of bad air prevented the team from making good on promising starts. With plenty of racing ahead for the weekend, starting with tomorrow's Geneve-Rolle-Geneve, there is plenty of time for the tables to turn.

Alinghi maintained their overnight position, securing second place in the Open de Versoix behind Team Tilt, last year's Champions. Amid decent wind that reached up to 16 knots, Ernesto Bertarelli's team notched two second place finishes in the day's four races, which, because of Tilt's two victories, was ultimately not enough to secure victory. It was very close, however, with only one point separating the two teams at the end of the day. Swisscom were two points further back in third. Next up it's the Geneve-Rolle-Geneve and Alinghi will be looking to build on this really encouraging and competitive performance as they look to go one better and take first place on the podium for the first time this Championship.

The wind on Lake Geneva started building up around 11:30, offering very nice conditions for the six races of the day. Despite a tricky start to the day, Alinghi managed to score a first and a second place, meaning that the team sits 2nd on the leaderboard of the Versoix Grand Prix. The team is now fully focused on picking up the two points that two separate them from first place.