Sunday June 2, 2019, at 4:25 pm the start is given for this 50th edition of the Solitaire Urgo le Figaro. The 47 competitors have left Nantes for the traditional parade and will leave in front of Pornichet for a first stop towards Kinsale (in the south of Ireland) via the island of Ré and the mythical Fastnet rock. A 550-mile warm-up.
For this anniversary year, the field is exceptional: three triple winners (Michel Desjoyaux, Yann Elies and Jérémie Beyou), a double winner (Armel Le Cléac'h) and two "singles" winners (Alain Gautier and Yoann Richomme) of previous editions are at the start. As a birthday present, the class offered itself a brand new boat: the Figaro Bénéteau 3, equipped with foils, a more modern sail set that makes the symmetrical spinnaker disappear for asymmetrical spinnakers and a gennaker.
All the skippers we interviewed during this week before the start are unanimous: this new boat is a good evolution for the class. It replaces the Figaro 2 after 16 years of service, with few regrets for this boat that Michel Desjoyeaux describes as "a great success a production boat with which we were racing ?. It will also be necessary to count on the new generation: Xavier Macaire (3rd on the Sardinha Cup and 1st of the Solo Master Coq) or Tanguy le Turquais (2nd of the Solo Master Coq) as well as on the one called "The Jackal": Armel le Cléac'h -"
Although more physical, the Figaro 3 is appreciated for its modernity and performance. With more open angles, it opens up new roads and new strategic options. The class also wanted not to reproduce the "mistakes of the past" and imposed a much stricter monotype than it was on the Figaro 2. As Julien Pulvé said," after 15 years, the boats were hyper optimized, there were Figaro 2.5 and boats remained in version 2.0 ?. It will also be necessary to count on the new generation: Xavier Macaire (3rd on the Sardinha Cup and 1st of the Solo Master Coq) or Tanguy le Turquais (2nd of the Solo Master Coq) as well as on the one called "The Jackal": Armel le Cléac'h -"
For this reason, the boats were drawn at the last Nautic in Paris and delivered in the order of receipt of the order form. It didn't give the teams much time to prepare the boat and train on it. The schedule was full" but he was to everyone "points out Michel Desjoyeaux. Everyone has managed their schedule in their own way to be more efficient than their neighbour. Some have preferred to spend time on the water during training, others have preferred to make the boat more reliable and optimize it.
The first races of the season have shown us that for the moment nothing is certain and that there is a risk of many upheavals. Yann Eliès, a three-time winner of the Solitaire du Figaro, took first place in the Sardinha cup, the first race of the season. Even if he leaves first and foremost for "the Enjoying it ", he also admits that it would be incredible to take first place even " if it's going to be very complicated ?. It will also be necessary to count on the new generation: Xavier Macaire (3rd on the Sardinha Cup and 1st of the Solo Master Coq) or Tanguy le Turquais (2nd of the Solo Master Coq) as well as on the one called "The Jackal": Armel le Cléac'h -" he impresses me a lot "admits Julien Pulvé," when you're next to a guy like Armel, you're not going to sleep or you're sure he'll double-cross you "tells us Tanguy.
The strategy of the proposed route for this edition may be complicated. After the first leg to Kinsale, the fleet will set off on a second leg of 630 very northern miles between Kinsale and Roscoff via the Isle of Man. The third stage is a loop from Roscoff that will take them across the Sein ravine and the English Channel twice. A step that is likely to be very complicated due to the currents in this area. ? We might pull our hair out "admits Tanguy the Turquoise. Finally, the last 500 mile leg, starting from Roscoff, will bypass Wolf Rock (at the south-western tip of England), turn Cardinal South Owers (south of England) then Cardinal West Saint-Marcouf for an arrival in Dieppe. This is a 500 nautical mile course with two new crossings of the English Channel. In total, the sailors will have covered 2130 nautical miles.
