Sailing: Golding first ashore

MIKE GOLDING and the crew of Group 4 crossed the finish line just after 9pm Cape Town time last night to win the third leg of the British Steel Challenge Round-the-World race, writes Stuart Alexander.

Group 4's time for the leg was 33 days, 17 hours, six minutes and 24 seconds, giving them an overall time of 115:18:25:38. Golding's boat has been the undisputed leader of the 10 yachts for the last four weeks, and the calms which slowed her just 17 miles from the finish have hit those behind, including John Chittenden in Nuclear Electric.

Chittenden, the winner of the second leg and likely to remain the overall leader, is expected to arrive in Cape Town this afternoon along with Hofbrau. All but Pride of Teesside should finish over the weekend.

BRITISH STEEL CHALLENGE Third Leg (Hobart to Cape Town): Positions with miles to finish: 1 Group 4 finished; 2 Nuclear Electric 92; 3 Hofbrau 104; 4 Coopers & Lybrand 245; 5 Heath Insured 276; 6 Rhone-Poulenc 295; 7 Interspray 359; 8 British Steel II 360; 9 Commercial Union 372; 10 Pride of Teesside 470.

Information supplied by BT