dinghy racing in Mangrove Bay on Sunday.

Elizabeth is the subject of one of the protests, from Contest , and the instigator of the other, against the race committee.

The protests are expected to be heard on Thursday and will have a major bearing on the battle for Coronation Cup placings.

All the controversy came in the first race, which may yet be ruled null and void if the protest by Elizabeth , skippered by Pan-Am silver medallist Malcolm Smith, is successful.

Elizabeth's protest against the race committee is all about the starting line-up. They are reportedly claiming they started from further back than they should have.

Contest's protest against Elizabeth is for a rule infringement, believed to be failure to tack.

Challenger won the race, with Elizabeth placing second, ahead of Victory and Contest , with Port Royal last.

In the second race, White and Port Royal bounced back to win and again, Elizabeth placed second, Challenger third, Victory fourth and Contest fifth.

Port Royal still leads the standings with two races remaining, as Elizabeth and Contest , with new skipper Martin Mello at the helm this year, battle it out for second.

Willie White, skipper of Port Royal , will not know exactly what he and his crew need to do to hold their lead on the final race day in Granaway Deep on September 12 until after the protest hearing.