He's been dreaming about it since he was 10, and he did it At the time, he saw the young Violette Dorange rush for this channel crossing record in Optimist . A challenge she achieved in 14 hours and 56 minutes in May 2016, then aged 15. For two years, he prepared to take over..
That's how he left the Needles (Isle of Wight) on Wednesday 27 June to join Cherbourg. A 60 mile course started in the winds of the Isle of Wight and with a little swell. Tom is quickly ill - one hour after departure - until he vomits. Tired, he thinks he's giving up, but he's hanging in there
He is accompanied on his crossing by his father on board an accompanying sailboat which ensures his safety and the supervision of the Optimist.
At the end of the course, he regained colour, recovered and was more motivated than ever. Thanks to the wind which did not let him off the course, he crossed the finish line at the entrance to the small bay of Cherbourg at 21 h 20. With this finish before 9:50 p.m. - the deadline for breaking the record - he set a new reference time of 14 hours and 20 minutes. The average distance covered was 4.19 knots (7.6 km/hour).
"I'm happy, but I don't really realize. It'll be tomorrow morning when I wake up. I've never crossed the Channel before. I'm tired, especially since I only slept three hours last night. I wasn't stressed, but I was afraid to forget something. It took me over two hours to fall asleep. My next dream? Do like François Gabart, the Route du Rhum, the Solitaire du Figaro, but that's if I want to go pro. We'll see in 10 years..." exclaimed the young boy upon his arrival.
"The arrival was a deliverance. For 4 to 5 hours Tom had a lot of wind and, on arrival, the wind held the last hour, but there was also a ferry current. Tom was completely independent. The weather we made together before the departure and during the last 2 to 3 hours, he had a GPS indicating the waypoint to aim Cherbourg. What if I'm surprised at his performance? Not so much, yes, Tom is pugnacious... !" concluded his father, Nicolas Goron.
