A first round-the-world abandonment
After 5 days of racing, Maxime Sorel, skipper of V and B - Monbana - Mayenne, has decided to abandon the race in consultation with his shore crew. The second stormy night resulted in damage to the hook and mainsail, but above all, the sailor injured his ankle. His physical condition prevented him from making repairs, so he decided to give up. He is now concentrating on the future, the Vendée Globe 2028, and confided the day after his withdrawal that he was suffering from a partial rupture of the external ligament.
Three different options for joining the doldrums and changing leaders
The rest of the race had more of a Figaro feel to it, as competitors had to contend with capricious weather and, above all, areas of heavy calms. Barely a week after the start and 1,600 miles sailed, a third of the fleet were within 150 miles of each other. Of particular note was the incredible performance of Justine Mettraux (Teamwork - Team Snef), who took advantage of the situation to join the leaders and move up to 4th position, teasing Dalin, Beyou, Goodchild... As a result, the fleet split into three groups. Jean Le Cam (Tout commence en Finistère âeuros Armor-lux), like Nicolas Lunven at the DST, took a different option from the rest of the fleet. Followed by Conrad Colman (MS Amlin), he decided to get closer to the Canaries, which allowed him to lead the fleet for a while. Conrad is due to return to the Spanish archipelago for some repairs.
Although King Jean was able to head south more quickly, lighter conditions forced him to take a more westerly route.
Among those who opted for the middle, Giancarlo Pedote (Prysmian) also took the lead, a first for an Italian skipper, followed by Sebastien Simon (Groupe Dubreuil). The others in the leading pack chose to push westwards. Starting with Thomas Ruyant (Vulnérable), who was the furthest back and was able to start finding wind again. The northerner could count on his most serious rivals Charlie Dalin (Macif Santé Prévoyance), Yoann Richomme (Paprec Arkea) and Jérémie Beyou (Charal). This tightening of the fleet benefited the tail-enders, such as Jingkun Xu (Singchain Team Haikou), who was able to take advantage of good conditions.
These changing conditions saw a new leader at the top of the rankings. Sébastien Simon (Groupe Dubreuil) chose a central route and was making headway at 14.6 knots on Saturday, November 16. However, the westerly group quickly found better conditions, and Sam Goodchild (Vulnérable) took advantage of them. He has been leading the fleet since the afternoon of the 17th, followed by Thomas Ruyant (Vulnérable) and Nicolas Lunven (Holcim-PRB), all under the ambush of Seb Simon (Groupe Dubreuil).
We continue to repair...
Louis Burton (Bureau Vallée) noticed cracks in the deck of his IMOCA after hearing a loud noise. Szabolcs Weöres (New Europe) has finally reached the Canaries to repair his mainsail, moored to a buoy off Las Palmas. Among other repairs, Fabrice Amedeo (Nexans âeuros Wewise) has repaired his pilot winch support and Damien Seguin (Groupe Apicil) has caught up with his entire job list.
15 sailors in less than 120 miles
Everyone is doing what they can to cope with these differences in pressure, before reaching the doldrums on Wednesday. Jean Le Cam (Tout Commence en Finistère âeuros Armor-lux) and Conrad Colman (AS Amlin) have reached the doldrums on November 18, and will pass to the east of Cape Verde before having to head west again. At 3 p.m., 15 sailors were within 120 miles of each other, and there were many crossings.
