India's Abhilash Tomy has taken the lead in the challenging Golden Globe Race (GGR) as it closes in on the finishing point of Le Sables-d'Olonne in western France.

"It is Abhilash who finally takes the lead of the GGR this morning, for a handful of miles, thanks to the extended ridge of high pressure that is temporarily trapping Kirsten," read the latest GGR official report on Wednesday.

As per the live tracker update provided by GGR, Commander Tomy was 1171 nautical miles (approximately 2150km) from the finish on the 226th day of the race.

Besides, Kochi-native Tomy, Austrian Michael Guggenberger and South African Kirsten Neuschafer, the latter the only woman entrant this edition, are battling the unpredictable ocean weather.

Commander Tomy was at least 25 nautical miles ahead of Neuschafer as they approach the archipelago of the Azores in Portugal.

The non-stop round-the-world race that began on September 4, 2022, with 16 participants now has only three remaining. The others retired midway due to technical failures or accidents.

Each participant uses a simple yacht with hull lengths ranging between 32 and 36ft.