Tributes for Torben and crew

Tuesday, 16 June 2009, 17:00 GMT

The tributes to Ericsson 4 have been pouring from rival skippers and sailors after Torben Grael's formidable team claimed the Volvo Ocean Race with an in-port race and leg to spare.

Torben Grael's crew established a 13-point lead over PUMA with just 12 to play for after last night's third place finish in leg nine.

It was their 18th top three spot from 22 scoring opportunities, but the brilliance of their results is best seen in the details. They have won five of nine legs - including three of the last four - and three of seven scoring gates. Both rate as the best in the fleet, while inshore, despite trailing Telefonica Blue, they have won twice in six tries.

Here the teams chasing them have their say on the 10th winner of this event.

Ken Read, PUMA skipper:
"Those guys have all the right in the world to be very proud of their effort. I think the fleet has been in awe of how they sailed their boat: they are simply better than all of us. They had a better prepared programme at the beginning and we have never been able to catch up. Good for them. Our hats are off to them."

Bouwe Bekking, Telefonica Blue skipper:
"They have sailed a brilliant race and deserved to win. It is a fantastic achievement for their crew. They did a lot of good, valuable work before the race started and made it count on the water. I have a lot of congratulations for Torben, they have sailed very well."

Roberto Bermudez, Delta Lloyd skipper:
"In a race like this 70% is done before it starts. You have to prepare well and they have. They have had a good sponsor and they have good people and did the right things. It is a big advantage when you have the money early, so you can practice, get the right people, the right designer. I think 30% is on the water and they have done very well there, sailed well and made a great achievement. They have raced against excellent sailors with good boats and won. Torben is a friend and I am happy for him. They sailed very well."

Magnus Olsson, Ericsson 3 skipper:
"They are fantastic and they deserved it. No one can say that they didn't deserve it. They have sailed so well, so consistently with so much experience: very worthy winners. They had a very good preparation time and they are world class sailors. They are better than everybody else."

Richard Mason, Ericsson 3 watch captain:
"Huge congratulations to them. Thoroughly professional; clinical; brilliant. It's a big tick in the box for Ericsson and the team as a whole. Preparation: It was done before they started the race."

Fernando Echavarri, Telefonica Black skipper:
"They sailed a brilliant race. They had good time to prepare, a good sponsor. They got good people, a good campaign. They learnt about their boat and what it can and cannot do early so they did not have many problems in the race. On behalf of the Telefonica team I would like to say big congratulations to Torben and his team. Great job."

Aksel Magdahl, Ericsson 3 navigator:
"It is a very good result for them. They were favourites, but they still had to go out and win. They sailed extremely well, made very few mistakes. I have really enjoyed being part of a team with them; a great learning experience being with them."

Damien Foxall, Green Dragon watch captain:
"A great performance."

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