THE third day of the Skandia Sail for Gold Regatta at the Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy saw the extreme weather conditions that have dominated the region relent to allow racing to resume across most classes.

The 49ers and Tornados had to abandon their races after just 20 minutes due to dangerous conditions but the rest of the classes saw action with all the racecourse inside and outside the breakwater being utilised.

Some of the most exciting racing came from the men and women in the 470 fleets. A closely fought battle for first place is ensuing between Skandia Team GBR sailors Rogers and Glanfield and training partners Asher and Elliot.

The two teams switched between first and second place all day yesterday, with the underdogs Asher and Willis edging in front to take the overall lead after day three.

The women's 470 fleet is also seeing conflict between Britain's Bassadone and Clark, who are being pushed hard by Sweden's Torgersson and Zachrisson.

Both teams put on an impressive display of power and tactical skill in the 20 knot conditions, securing multiple first and second places. Birgmark (SWE) is still holding onto the lead in the Finn heavyweight dinghy, with world number three Britain's Ed Wright raising his game to creep up the leaderboard to second.

The RSX fleet saw some challenging racing with Britain's Nick Dempsey taking control of the men's fleet, scoring two firsts.

The Weymouth man's results have allowed him to make gains on the Frenchman Fabrice Hassen, who tops the leaderboard and has dominated the RSX 9.5 racing since Wednesday.

Also flying the flag for Britain is Beijing hopeful Bryony Shaw in the RS:X 8.5. She is also based in Weymouth and her performance on the water was outstanding, scoring three consecutive firsts, placing her top of the table.