The 440 professional and amateur crews set off at noon, for a 42-mile course around Belle-Ile-en-Mer. Sun and wind were together at the start of La Trinité-sur-Mer to the delight of the sailors. By 9:00 p.m., 260 boats had crossed the finish line. On the podium were three multihulls, an Orma trimaran, an Ultimate and a Multi 50. The first monohull to complete the course was Dongfeng, led by Charles Caudrelier, who had invited Armel le Cléac'h and Thomas Coville on board for the occasion.
It is Alain Gautier who wins this 2017 edition aboard the trimaran Orma Sensation Océan. This is his second victory on the Tour de Belle-Ile after the 2014 edition, which he had already won. With his crew of amateurs and three professionals, the skipper completed the race in 2 hours and 29 minutes. He just missed out on the event record, still held by Sébastien Josse in 2 hours 24 minutes.
"I'm very happy with this second victory! The weather conditions were splendid and I had a superb crew mixing amateurs and professionals. The battle with Actual Ultim was really nice. As far as La Teignouse, they were 100 metres behind us, but on the downwind leg we outdistanced them. We had a great day on the water even though the record was five minutes behind us!" explained Alain Gautier.
The second to reach the port of La-Trinité-sur-Mer was Yves Le Blévec, skipper of Actual Ultime. "The TOUR DE BELLE-ILE is an event that I like very much and that takes place at home. I'm delighted with this day, because we watched Actual Ultim only two days ago. So this is the first outing of the boat. We had dreamy conditions! There was a great fight at the start of the race with Sensation Océan, but they quickly outdistanced us. We're much heavier because our boat is designed to sail around the world. To beat them, the course would have had to be a little bit bigger!" said the skipper.
Armel Tripon, skipper of the Multi50 Réauté Chocolat, completes the podium. "First race, first confrontation with two other multi50s and first sailing with the foils. All in all, we're very happy! There was a great fight with FenêtréA - Mix Buffet and Drekan Groupe but we managed to get away with it!"
On the monohull side, the first to finish the race was Dongfeng, skippered by Charles Caudrelier "We shared a dream day around Belle-Ile with a bit of wind, but not too much and a great team. We had nice and competent guests. It was nice to share our world of the Volvo Ocean Race and the Dongfeng Race Team. Thomas (Coville) knows the race, as we won it together in 2012 and Armel (Le Cléac'h) is more used to racing single-handed and enjoyed, I think, sailing with a crew and just taking care of the navigation. It was very relaxed, but also a good training, because you always learn when you're at sea"
