Shosholoza steals a last-gasp victory from Mascalzone LatinoMascalzone Latino’s pre-start manoeuvring has been exemplary in the Louis Vuitton Cup, but on this occasion Shosholoza helmsman Paolo Cian managed to get a penalty against his rival compatriots after getting a ‘hook’ on the Italian boat.

While the Italians led up the first beat – and indeed from the start to finish – it was always a matter of whether or not they could eke out the sort of lead that would enable them to take the 270-penalty turn before the South Africans caught them.

When Shosholoza fluffed a gybe down the final run, the Italians sped away to a 150-metre lead. It looked like they might just have the gap to effect their manoeuvre. Cameron Dunn spun the wheel as ITA 99 danced around the finish mark but it was all too late as RSA 83 came charging by under spinnaker.

The South Africans scraped past the downspeed Italians for a 6-second win. Judging by the celebrations on board, the Shosholoza crew were ever so slightly thrilled at having beated their mid-table rivals.

Every match from now on is a ‘must-win’ if Victory Challenge is going to topple Desafio Espanol from the Semi Final place. Against Areva today it was nailbitingly close up the first beat as the two boats traded tacks all the way to the windward mark. The French rounded right on the transom of SWE 96 but the killer move came when Magnus Holmberg suckered Sébastien Col into a dummy gybe, sending FRA 93 the other way while the Swedes sailed in clear air. From there the Swedish boat stretched out a small but useful lead to the finish.

The other three matches were straightforward and ran to form, with Desafio Espanol beating United Internet Team Germany, BMW ORACLE Racing beating +39 Challenge, and Emirates Team New Zealand beating China Team.