Photo by Carlo Borlenghi, www.seasee.it

Photo by Carlo Borlenghi, www.seasee.it



The Nautor Challenge Volvo Ocean Race team announced that Paul
Cayard, skipper of the winning yacht EF Language in the last Whitbread
race, will join the crew of Amer Sports One.

Cayard will replace American tactician Dee Smith, who has returned to the
United States for an operation on his right shoulder. Had Cayard not been
available, then Smith would have sailed leg four.

Amer Sports One skipper, Grant Dalton, said, "Dee has been doing a great
job, but has had trouble with his shoulder for several months. It's
painful and restricts his movement and, sooner or later, he would need
surgery. The fact that Paul is available for leg four allows Dee to get
it over with now.

"Dee left New Zealand on Sunday nigh and had the surgery on Tuesday. He
will return to New Zealand, and the team, next weekend. The medical
advice is that he will require five or six weeks of rehabilitation and is
expected to be fit for leg five."

Cayard is no stranger to the Nautor Challenge team as Dalton explains,
"Paul has been involved with the Nautor Challenge syndicate from its
inception. We have conferred a number of times about various aspects of
the campaign. He is also a board member of Nautor's Swan and honorary
chairman of Nautor Challenge."

Dalton, second to Cayard in the 1997-98 Whitbread, said "I chased Paul
around the world four years ago and I would rather have him sailing with
me than against me.

"Paul will take over Dee's tactical role working with navigator Roger
Nilson and he will also have a role on deck. Dee offered to have the
operation after the race, doing it now will allow him to get stronger
through to the finish.

Cayard is looking forward to the race. "Leg 4 is the best leg of the
race. It has it all... you start in pouring rain, sail through gales, 30
foot waves and ice, and finally finish in extreme heat. I am looking
forward to sailing with Grant and his team and racing for Nautor
Challenge"

Naturally Dee Smith is disappointed to miss what he agrees is the best leg
of the race.

During the last race, Cayard described this leg saying, "At times we have
been sailing in a tunnel of water created by the bow wave which shoots 15
feet up in the air on each side. We have had two full moon, clear sky
nights...indescribable."

It's not really surprising that he wants to come back and sail it again.

See volvooceanrace.org