French grab lead in round-the-world Volvo Ocean Race

French challengers Groupama took the Volvo Ocean Race overall lead in the early hours of Friday, finally wresting the advantage from Spain's Telefonica, who had headed the fleet since November. With two legs to go, only 21 points will separate the four leading boats and with each stage worth 30 points to the winner, the race is as wide open at this late stage as it has been in its 39-year history. The biggest celebrations on a balmy Lisbon night belonged to Abu Dhabi and British skipper Ian Walker, who battled through two suspensions caused by boat breakages to take his first leg victory in two editions of offshore sailing’s toughest professional test. "I've sailed about 70,000 miles around the world and I’ve never won a leg -- 70,000 miles is a lot of effort," Walker said. "To win a leg was one of my goals for this race and it feels great. So much effort goes into these projects and it’s all for moments like this." The crew won the 3,500-nautical mile trans-Atlantic stage from Miami to the Portuguese capital with just five minutes and 27 seconds to spare from Franck Cammas' Groupama after 11 days of sailing. "We were very close to Abu Dhabi and it came down to the wire," said Cammas, leading France’s first challenge in the race since 1994. "We did a beautiful leg, with ups and downs and we finish on a high. We are super happy." The result leaves Groupama ahead by just three points over Telefonica, who took an early stranglehold on the race after winning the first three legs but have struggled for pace in the latest two stages. The next race leg takes the fleet to Lorient in France before finally finishing in Galway, Ireland, after nine months and more than 39,000 nautical miles sailed. Overall standings: 1. Groupama (France) 183 pts, 2. Telefonica (Spain) 180, 3. Puma (USA) 171, 4. Camper (New Zealand/Spain) 162, 5. Abu Dhabi 104, 6. Team Sanya (China) 32.