Volvo Ocean Race - The will to win

7:34 AM Mon 24 Oct 2011 GMT

'Volvo Ocean Race 2011-12' ? Mar?a Mui?a

Taking on the challenge of the Volvo Ocean Race requires the very highest calibre of professional sailors and the six crews competing this time are packed with a tantalizing cross section of Olympic medalists, world champions, America's Cup veterans and offshore sailing record breakers.

This edition sees, by far, the most even field in the race's 38-year history, with no stand-out favourite and the only certainty being that, for every sailor on all six teams, winning is the only goal.

Neal McDonald, skipper of second placed Assa Abloy in the 2001-02 race, and now back for his fifth attempt to capture sailing's holy grail, this time as watch leader aboard Spanish entry Team Telef?nica, explains the mentality of the sailors.

'Not winning is everyone's biggest dread. Much more so than the dangers we face out on the oceans and the cold and uncomfortable conditions on the boats.

'We are professional sailors and for us this is, first and foremost, a race. More than anything, we all want to win it. We don't get involved in this race for the challenge. We do it because we want to win the Volvo Ocean Race.'

McDonald believes that the strength of the Telef?nica campaign lies in the strong leadership skills of their skipper, double Olympic medalist Iker Mart?nez, as well as the close knit nature of the entire crew.

'Iker is an amazing sailor and one of the most highly motivated people I have ever sailed with. That is a fantastic asset to have in a Volvo Ocean Race skipper. His magic though is being able to extract the best from each of us in the crew, at exactly the time that it is needed. That's a good indicator of a strong leader and Iker has it for sure.

'This is the closest crew I have ever sailed with. We are together the whole time. We get up, go to the gym together, have breakfast together, then we work on the boat together. We are talking about sailing and the race the whole time, but somehow it's also fun and we have lots of laughs.'

Asked what it will take to win this edition of the Volvo Ocean Race, McDonald laughs and scratches his head before answering.

'Ask me that question in six month's time and I will give you a much clearer answer. The differences between all of the teams this time are so small. Of course the boat has to be fast and reliable but you also have to have a crew that has the will to win.

'It's a hard race to be enthusiastic about all the way to the end and this time it is so close that people's attitudes could make the difference between winning and losing.'

Volvo Ocean Race website

by Volvo Ocean Race

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Volvo Ocean Race - The will to win

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