Charlie Dalin, skipper of the latest-generation IMOCA boat Apivia is the first to cross the finish line of the 2020/2021 Vendée Globe after 80 days, 06 hours, 15 minutes and 47 seconds. Although he is the first to reach Les Sables-d'Olonne after completing his round the world voyage, victory is not a foregone conclusion, as some of those chasing after him, notably Boris Herrmann and Yannick Bestaven are benefiting from compensation time for the rescue of Kevin Escoffier.
Here are his first words after crossing the finish line:
"I'm pleased to have crossed the Vendée Globe line in the lead. It's quite a race, quite an adventure. It's impressive to go from being alone in the world to so many people. Without any transition at all. I'm surrounded by a cloud of boats. It's really special, there's no transition. I knew it was going to be crowded, but I was surprised by the welcome.
This is the Vendée Globe. There are a lot of twists and turns. I've had my ups and downs, and I've done a lot of DIY. It's a great experience. I've crossed the Indian Ocean, the Pacific, I've rounded my first Cape Horn. I remember every manoeuvre, every sail change, every gybe... I'm tired of making the list again. If we were told all the things we're going to do in a Vendée Globe, we'd say that we can't overcome all that, but in the end we manage to do the impossible.
The hardest thing for me is losing the hold of my port foil. I thought it was over. I was in the lead, I saw water at the point where all my ropes were passing through and I told myself that it wasn't possible. Then I got a flood alarm. The foil well was full of water. My foil was moving all over the place. I lost this wedge that guides it. I called my project manager, it was a difficult time. I thought I was going to end up in New Zealand or Australia and have to give up, but I spent the day in the cape doing strat, a whole day's work, from sunrise to sunset.
Then there was also the storm in the Indian Ocean. It was really big, quite complicated. I was relieved when the wind died down. Except that two hours before the wind died, I lost my two.. e airborne. I had lost the first one in the descent of the Atlantic. I thought fate was hanging over me.
It was a great race, it was a great battle with Thomas (Ruyant), with Louis (Burton) at the end, with Yannick (Bestaven). It's a magical race. It changed me. I don't know in what way. It's an incredible emotion, of a strength never felt before and with a strong impact on me, on the way I think, on my way of thinking... It's so strong what we live. It's so powerful.
I'm a fairly stable person normally in terms of emotions, and the Vendée Globe is so strong, so powerful. Going around the world is so much emotion, joy and sadness. I've had a few dry spells, which never lasted very long, but I managed to overcome them each time.
For me, the job is done by crossing that finish line in the lead. But it's a question of timing like in the Figaro. Normally in the Vendée Globe, it doesn't happen like that, but the watch is chasing me and the stopwatch is running until Yannick and Boris arrive.
It's peculiar. I hope it goes well for me. We'll see in a few hours, but it's only natural that there should be these bonuses. If the race directors had called me, I would have done it, but it was impossible for me, as I would have had to sail upwind. But I wouldn't have hesitated and it's normal that the racers who did have bonuses. But I'm not sure that the positions were changed by the bonuses. The fleet would have been in the same place even if they hadn't picked up Kevin, but that's part of fate and bonuses. The main thing is that I crossed the finish line in the lead and that's great, that's top... That's for me, the rest is just bonuses."
