Orcas collide with boats during sailing race in more killer whale "attacks"
Gibraltar - A dangerous moment occurred on the high seas when orcas intervened in the racing action of The Ocean Race!
The Ocean Race is a traditional sailing regatta around the world, where yachts compete every three or four years to determine a winner.
Yet this year, animals entered the chat, and intercepted the route of a few of the boats!
As the race's organizer announced, two VO65 boats "had direct encounters with orcas - killer whales - in the Atlantic Ocean to the west of Gibraltar" last Thursday afternoon.
The boats of the teams JAJO from the Netherlands and Mirpuri Trifork Racing from Portugal reported the collisions.
The whales rammed into the boat in one case, and were said to have been "nudging or biting at the rudders."
Luckily, there was no damage to their boats, and no injuries to any of the sailors.
Team JAJO skipper Jelmer van Beek called the incident with his boat, which involved three orcas, a "scary moment."
"Impressive to see the orcas, beautiful animals, but also a dangerous moment for us as a team. We took down the sails and slowed down the boat as quickly as possible and luckily after a few attacks they went away."
Why are orcas attacking boats more frequently?
The area on the southern coast of Spain in the Straight of Gibraltar is becoming increasingly known for its "orca attacks" in recent weeks. At least three boats have already sunk in the area, according to organizers.
There have been about 500 similar instances since 2020 in which killer whales have approached or reacted to boats in the waters around Morocco, Portugal, and Spain.
Scientists are still searching for causes of the animals' behavior.
Cover photo: IMAGO/USA TODAY Network