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Early morning showers abated just in time for the noon start of the 75th Annual Bacardi Cup Star-Class Regatta. Foss Miller and Greg Newhall of Vashon, Washington, came from behind to win the first race of the world-class six-day sailing competition on Miami's Biscayne Bay.

Jose Van Der Ploeg and his crew Diego Fructuoso, the aggressive Spanish team in fifth place after the first turn, stormed ahead to take the lead at the halfway point, as the Portuguese duo managed to stave off other assaults and hold on to second place. Meanwhile Bromby and Seise battled their way to fourth place, with eyes on Americans Foss Miller and Greg Newhall, who hovered just ahead in third.

Seventh after the first turn, the opportunistic Miller and Newhall remained consistently among the leaders, and managed to withstand the attack by Bromby and Seise, who would fall out of the top ten near the finish. The Americans from Washington State charged ahead of the Portuguese and Spanish teams, which battled for the lead throughout most of the race but finished third and ninth respectively.

At the end, Miller and Newhall held off Rod Hagebols and Paul Erickson, the California team that finished second, to win the first race of the 2002 Bacardi Cup. Of the favorites, only Cayard and Trinter crossed the finish line in the top ten.

"We were in third place behind the Spanish and Portuguese teams coming around the final turn," said Miller. "We jibed earlier than those two boats and got a nice breeze."

"The Bacardi Cup regularly attracts some of the world's top sailors - along with many seasoned amateurs wishing to test their skills against the best," said Jose Argamasilla Bacardi, Bacardi USA's vice president of public relations. "Representing some 20 countries, this year's field is the largest and most evenly-matched in Bacardi Cup history. It's going to be a very exciting week."

Race 2 Results

1 Foss Miller & Greg Newhall USA
2 Rod Hagebols & Paul Erickson USA
3 Alfonso Domingos & Bernardo Santos POR
4 Jeremy Davidson & Louis Holmes USA
5 Andy Lovell & Prieur Leary USA
6 Jock Kohlhas & Richard Peters USA
7 John MacCausland & Sean Delaney USA
8 Ian Barker & Edmund Peel GBR
9 Jose Van Der Ploeg & Diego FructuosoESP
10 Paul Cayard & Phil Trinter USA