Winners of Dubai to Muscat Sailing Race pose with officials during the presentation ceremony.

Gulf Today, Sports Reporter

Ivana & Aleks, skippered by Chavdar Alexandrov, was announced as the winner of the 31st edition of the Aramex Dubai to Muscat Sailing Race (‘Aramex D2M’) at the end of the race at the Marina Bandar Al Rowdha in Muscat, Oman.

Team Pink Diamond secured the second place while Twister and Matrix finished third and fourth respectively.

This year, the Aramex D2M featured 20 teams with 94 sailors of 26 nationalities competing in one of the region’s most challenging keelboat races.

Starting from Dubai Offshore Sailing Club in Jumeirah, Dubai, sailors raced to the finish line in Marina Bandar Al Rowdha in Muscat, Oman.

During this year’s race, sailors faced a challenging experience with a huge variety of wind conditions - ranging from no winds to an extreme 35 knots with high waves, the journey was unpredictable, testing sailors on their skill and teamwork.

Current edition witnessed an increase in women participants demonstrating their skill on the water with 17 women in total, 3 of which were skippers and 2 all female boats. Additionally, this year the race also comprised 1 under 21 and 4 over 70 sailors.

“The Aramex Dubai to Muscat Race was indeed another thrilling edition that reflected the amazing skills that these sailors possessed. Congratulations to UAE 43, Ivana & Aleks for winning the title for the second year in a row.

The competition was intense all along the route. We appreciate all our sailors who undertook the challenge and pushed themselves by participating this year. We look forward to planning next year’s race, and hope to see even more teams participate,” said David Worrall, the D2M Race Director.