Update on Penalty Points

The Clipper Race Committee has finalised the list of penalty points to be given to the teams following the assessment of damages and repairs needed after Race 3, Race 4 and Race 5 up until the Hobart stopover.

Penalty points are awarded because of damage sustained during racing and are designed to encourage crew to look after and maintain their yachts throughout the race.

Equipment damage

The Clipper Race Committee keeps a running total of the costs of lost and damaged equipment and will impose one penalty point to the relevant team when the running total reaches £500 and an additional penalty point for every subsequent £500. There were no penalty points issued to any team due to equipment damage in either Race 3, Race 4 or Race 5.

Race Director Mark Light explained “Considering the length and nature of the Southern Ocean Legs there is a remarkably low level of damage and therefore costs across the fleet. It is a testament to the way that the Skippers and crew are looking after the boats."

Sail damage

Separately to this, penalty points can be issued for sail damage and repairs. Two penalty points will be issued when the running total exceeds £500 and a further two penalty points will be issued for every subsequent £500 on the running total. This applies to all sails and sail bags and is cumulative.

After assessing sail damage and repair in Race 3, Race 4 and Race 5, the Clipper Race Committee has issued two penalty points to CV26 (Visit Seattle) for sail damage and repair after breaking through the £500 running total in Sydney. No further penalty points have been issued.

A full explanation of penalty points can be found in our Sailing Instructions and FAQ section (under ‘The Race’, subsection ‘When and why are Penalty Points applied?’).

Penalty points do not affect individual races but can impact the overall standings table when applied. This has been updated and can be viewed here.