With less than a month to go before the start, what is your state of mind? And what are your ambitions for this Transat Jacques Vabre? Being the winner of the Vendée Globe puts extra pressure on you?
I'm happy to be back on the water. I have no pressure. We know very well that the boats with big foils are faster than us. We will do according to the capacities of our boat.
The interest of this Jacques Vabre is the first step in a new page that is being written for the Vendée Globe 2024. It is more a training for the future than a purely sporting objective.
Have you done any work on Maitre-Coq since the Vendée Globe?
The boat is sold. ( Editor's note: Damien Seguin, who sails on Apicil, bought the former Maitre Coq, the winning boat of the Vendée Globe ). We are already working on the new boat that is being built. Maître Coq is in the same configuration as for the Vendée Globe.
Can you tell us about your co-skipper, Jean-Marie Dauris and this choice?
Jean-Marie has been working with us, in the team, for 3 years. He is our sports director and a long time friend. We used to windsurf against each other when we were 15. We come from the same village in the Arcachon basin.
He has participated in the Olympic Games and two America's Cups. His skills are well known and recognized.
Following Bilou's withdrawal, it was only natural to take him on as co-skipper. He knows the boat best. We had originally decided that he would stay on to design the new boat, but the team is versatile enough to continue building the boat without him.
How did the preparation for this Transat Jacques Vabre go?
In La Rochelle, there are no collective trainings as it is the case in Brittany. We have sailed a lot for Maitre Coq's team. We know the boat. We go quietly. We don't put pressure on ourselves.
What are the constraints and advantages of a double-handed race format compared to solo racing?
The advantage is to have two pairs of arms. It's always better for the maneuvers and always nice to be able to share this adventure with two people, especially when we know each other.
What do you think of the new race courses? What will it change?
We're going to go through the doldrums twice. That means it will be a mess twice. Jérémie Beyou and Christopher Pratt remember that, they got stuck on the Jacques Vabre in 2019. But it's also an opportunity for us to get back in touch with faster boats.
How do you feel about the competition, both in personal and material terms (boat)?
As good outsiders. We have shown that we can sail well in the Vendée Globe. Even if the boats on the grid are faster than us, we'll have to be smarter. In the Vendée Globe, there were several boats that were not at the top of their preparation. In this Transat Jacques Vabre, the competition is enormous because they are better prepared.
After the Transat Jacques Vabre, what are your plans?
Devote myself to the implementation of the new boat. We have to launch her at the beginning of May 2022. We'll have to get to grips with her, test her, and make her reliable for the 2022 Route du Rhum, for which I have a real performance objective.
