French seize lead in Volvo Ocean Race

French team Groupama capitalised on Sanya’s enforced pit stop in the Volvo Ocean Race on Tuesday, forging a significant lead just as the teams were preparing to enter an anti-piracy stealth zone.Groupama took over the lead on day 10 of the second leg from Cape Town to Abu Dhabi, 24 hours after Sanya were forced to head for port with a rigging failure.Franck Cammas, skipper of the first French entry in the race in 18 years, had clear blue water between his boat and the chasing pack, with their lead at 1100 GMT up to 17.5 nautical miles and still growing.“There are lots of smiles on the faces when the position reports come in now,” said Cammas, whose team finished third in the first leg after a tactical gamble that did not pay off as well.“We have not rested since the start of the leg and we are gaining step by step.” Cammas said the crew were wearing helmets because of low visibility as the boat sped along at 20 knots.