It's already day five of the Raid World Championship and the top teams are coming down the home stretch. Nike now leads the race, followed by Wilsa Sport - Helly Hansen, with Les Arcs Quechua in third some distance back. Nike still hold about an hour of rest time over Wilsa Sport as well, which will play in their favor as the teams battle for the top spot. GoLite-Timberland and Team Spyder finish off the top five.
Yesterday saw two of the top contenders in the race withdrawl. Both Ertips and Saab Salomon were forced to pull out with injuries, crushing their hopes of taking home the championship. Neither team was ever threatening the leaderboard, but they were both pre-race contenders to make some noise, and possibly grab a podium finish.
Wilsa Sport - Helly Hansen also made a costly error that has allowed Nike to not only catch them, but put some distance between them. First it was a navigation error that allowed Nike to pull even, and then upon arriving at Assistance Point 11 together, Wilsa Sport was told they would be assessed a one hour penalty for not sticking to a mandatory course on an earlier leg. This allowed Nike to get out to the ropes course quicker, and earn a small lead.
According to this report on the Raid website, Nike is looking fresh and moving fast, which is bad news for the rest of the field. Meanwhile, Les Arcs is said to be "plodding" on the field, which may mean one of the teams behind them could catch them and edge them out for a podium finish. It should be an exciting race right down to the end!
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