Sweden’s Anna Ostling and Martina Carlsson stole the show on day three of the Aspen Women’s Match Racing regatta in Bermuda.

Ostling continued her assault on the top of the leaderboard by winning three of her four races, including an important victory over France’s Pauline Courtois after overcoming a penalty in the pre-start.

Carlsson picked up her first wins of the regatta after a tough opening two days.

Everything on day three built towards the Ostling-Courtois clash, the last race in the final flight and the Swede was on the back foot early after being hit with an early penalty in pre-start, which infuriated her.

“We got the penalty very early in the pre-start because we were a little bit off time going into the pre-start zone from port and that was on me and should not happen,” Ostling said.

“But we made a good start and had good speed. We picked the right shifts and gained around the bottom mark. The girls on board are constantly working on the speed and that is something you can’t relax about.

“But I need to go home and think as I’m not very happy with my starts. The one against Pauline was perfect but we can improve. It’s difficult as winds are shifting 40 degrees but the mindset needs to be that if you sail well on the course then you can win anyway.

“We are so looking forward to tomorrow and we can’t wait.”

Ostling’s compatriot Carlsson cut a dejected figure after two days without a win but her smile lit up an already sunny Hamilton Harbour when she returned to the dock after three wins, including one over her more experienced countrywoman.

“We managed to make some good starts and to win feels amazing. We had some great teamwork and everything felt better, the speed and getting to the line.

“We had some good chats last night and a lot of well wishes from home. We now have three races left and are looking forward to it and ready to go all in.”

While Ostling and Courtois cemented their positions at the top of the standings on nine and eight points respectively, the race for the last two semi-final spots is heating up.

America’s Nicole Breault has move into third on seven points, with Denmark’s Lea Vogelius fourth on six. Julia Aartsen, of the Netherlands, is still in the mix with five points with three races remaining.