Diva G Leads West Germany to Victory in Admiral’s Cup

West Germany, led by its big boat Diva G, won the 18-nation Admiral’s Cup yachting trophy Wednesday, its three team boats finishing atop the standings of the gale-lashed Fastnet race.

The British team, reduced to two boats, finished second in cup competition at the annual five-stage, 605-mile race along England’s south coast. New Zealand was third.

Champagne flowed, and a jazz band played, “When the Saints Go Marching In,” as the Diva G, owned by Fredy Diekell and Peter Westphal Langloh, tied up at dockside early Wednesday.

Diva G actually crossed the finish line behind the Swedish yacht Carat, biggest of the cup fleet. But through a combination of handicaps and the performance of other boats on the teams, the Swedes were well down in cup competition.

The third boat home was High Roller, owned by Bill Power of San Francisco. A pre-race favorite, the American team was midway down the 18-nation table, with three teams yet to finish.

The two other U.S. cup boats, Randy Short’s Sidewinder and Lowell North’s Sleeper, were forced to retire during the race from the Isle of Wight, off Portsmouth harbor, to Plymouth.

A total of 24 boats failed to finish. Many were dismasted, damaged or capsized. Two others from the fleet of 54 never managed to start. Only three teams managed to finish the Fastnet without losing at least one boat.

The provisional point totals at the top of the Admiral’s Cup table after the Fastnet Race: West Germany, 1,881; Britain, 1,596; New Zealand, 1,467; Australia 1,399.