Sailing: MacArthur sets fast pace in bad weather

Stormy weather was yesterday helping Britain's Ellen MacArthur to set a fast pace in her attempt to break the round-the-world record on Kingfisher 2.

The boat was averaging 26.4 knots and, after the first 24-hour run, MacArthur and her crew were just 12 minutes behind the record for the Jules Verne Challenge, held by the Frenchman Bruno Peyron on Orange.

To beat Peyron's record of 64 days 8hr 37min 24sec, Kingfisher 2 must finish one second before 3.25pm and 13 seconds (GMT) on 4 April.

Peyron's compatriot, Olivier de Kersauson, who set off on 11 January on board his trimaran Geronimo, is two days ahead of the record pace. Last night Kingfisher was 308 nautical miles due south west of Porto on the Portuguese coast, taking advantage the current.

Russell Coutts, the skipper of the America's Cup challenger, Alinghi, has broken his silence over a falling-out with Team New Zealand, saying he and other sailors were locked out of their base soon after successfully defending the Cup in 2000. Coutts and his tactician, Brad Butterworth, were the two highest-profile Team New Zealand members to defect to challenging syndicates after beating the Italians, Prada, 5-0 in Auckland three years ago.

Coutts said they quit Team New Zealand after failing to reach agreement over the management of the next defence with the trustees who controlled the syndicate. "In our view this was because of the persistent obstruction about financial dealings, and hostility towards our taking management from the chairman, Richard Green, and trustee John Lusk," Coutts said.