Jelik Leads Second Day Langkawi International Regatta

‘Jelik’, the yacht from Hong Kong, led the second day of the Royal Langkawi International Regatta (RLIR) 2009 on handicapped counts at the Royal Langkawi Yacht Club (RLYC) here today.

Skippered by Frank Pong, the yacht however, got tangled with the strings tying down a buoy, just as principal race officer Mark Pryke was about to start the race.

Official divers were forced to untangle the mess but the incident did not hamper the experienced crew from going on to win today’s races.

However, the second day result has produced an interesting scenario with ‘Jelik’, ‘Quantum Racing’ and ‘Hi Fi’, all in contention as they are tied at the top of the leader board with nine points each.

Three-time champion Peter Ahern’s ‘YO!2’ slipped to fourth position after coming in fourth and fifth in the two races yesterday.

The Royal Malaysian Navy’s ‘Zuhrah’, skippered by Mohd Razali Mansor, is trailing the pack after yet another disappointing outing.

The 33 yachts taking part in this year’s race are set to go on a round-the-island race tomorrow.

Pryke said the round-the-island leg was much anticipated by the sailors as they had been clamouring for such a leg to be introduced for a long time.

“We have finally chartered the course and it is going to be an exciting race as the yachts make their way round the island,” he said.