Applications for the 10th edition of the Vendée Globe are officially open with 1,000 days to go until the start on 10th November 2024

Applications will close on 2nd October 2023.

Since the end of the conclusion of the last edition, the SAEM Vendée has been observing a huge amount of interest from skippers and their sponsors, who are already keen to be at the start of the Vendée Globe on 10th November 2024.

As announced last October by Alain Leboeuf - President of the SAEM Vendée and the Vendée Department - when the Notice of Race was published, the applications for the 2024 Vendée Globe officially open on 14th February 2022, Saint Valentine's Day. A nod to the many sailing and ocean racing lovers.

With 1000 days to go until the start, the adventure towards the tenth edition officially begins with this first stage of the entry process.

In the previous edition, 37 candidates had officially declared themselves. This record will likely be broken again by 2 October 2023, the closing date for applications.

The first qualifying stage for the Vendée Globe 2024 solo round the world race will come close to the southwest coast of Ireland when it sets sail this summer. 

The "Vendée Arctic - Les Sables d'Olonne" race will leave from Port Olona, France on June 12, 2022.

This 3,500 nautical miles race is the first qualifying race for the next Vendée Globe and so it will be an opportunity for the skippers of the Vendée Globe 2024 to take on the challenging waters of the northern latitudes. For many of the solo skippers this will be the time they will have crossed the Arctic Circle and circumnavigated Iceland.

To underpin the high level sporting aspects of this very demanding race the SAEM Vendée has appointed Francis Le Goff to act as Race Director.

The President of the SAEM Vendée Alain LEBOEUF, beside him is the Mayor of Les Sables d'Olonne Yannick MOREAU; Laura LE GOFF, the General Manager of the SAEM Vendée and Francis LE GOFF, Race Director of the Vendée Arctic - Les Sables d'Olonne null An experienced Race Direction team is appointed for a race with an extreme, innovative course

Francis Le Goff has been involved in race management teams for more than 20 years and has built up a very solid experience of major offshore and ocean racing events. From watch leader to coach, to Regional League Sailing Director to Race Director, Le Goff has built his marine skillsets over the years through a very multi-faceted approach to the sea.

He has been Race Director on the Solitaire du Figaro from 2017 to 2021 on the Transat en Double Concarneau-Saint-Barthélemy in 2019 and 2021, on the Route du Rhum Destination Guadeloupe 2018 and most recently on the double handed Transat Jacques Vabre Normandie Le Havre 2021. Overall he has accumulated a significant and varied experience.

48-year-old Yannick Bestaven, the winner of this year's ninth edition of the Vendée Globe has won the French Sailor of the Year Award in Paris.

Before his title of Sailor of the Year presentation, Bestaven was awarded the Legion of Honor by the President of the Republic of France for his victory in the non-stop solo round-the-world race, 

Yannick is respected in France for his 'availability', his commitment and his ability to share his passion beyond sports performance.

Yannick was born in Saint Nazaire, then spent his childhood in Arcachon. He was introduced to sailing from an early age. Barely finished his engineering studies, Yannick took an interest in competition and more particularly in ocean racing. It was during a decisive meeting with the navigator Yves Parlier in 2000, that Yannick embarked on transoceanic competition by entering the 2001 mini-transat (6.50m monohull) which he won conclusively.

On winning the award, Bestaven, Sailor of the Year 2021, said:  “There are quite a few beautiful names on this trophy. It is an honour for me to be on this list of great sailors. My victory in the Vendée Globe means a lot of work, time spent on the water and preparation. We race alone but we don't do anything alone. This trophy, I dedicate it to my partners, my team, my family and my loved ones. "

British sailor Alex Thomson has announced he won't compete as a skipper in the 2024 Vendee Globe, the solo, non-stop race around the world, but doesn't rule out returning to the race in 2028. Thomson has competed in the IMOCA circuit for 19 years including five successive Vendee Globes with two podium finishes and numerous world records.

"I have had the privilege to compete and race IMOCA 60s for almost 20 years. I love the sport but it's now time for me to spend more time on land, with my young family. My wife Kate has single-handedly raised our children for the last 10 years whilst I have pursued my dream. Now I want to support Kate and allow her the same opportunity that she has given me. This doesn't mean that I am retiring, just changing my role, from spending most of my time at sea, to spending more of it on land."

Thomson and his team 5 West Ltd will remain together, "The goal has always been to win the Vendee Globe, which to me remains the toughest sporting challenge left in the world today, and we haven't accomplished that yet. This is the start of a new chapter, with a new skipper, and we will provide him or her with all the tools, knowledge, experience and environment to win."

The rules of participation have been put in place three years before the start of the next Vendee Globe Race, the single-handed non-stop race around the world.

Since the finish of the last edition, the SAEM Vendée has observed unprecedented enthusiasm from the skippers and their sponsors, many of whom are known to want to take the Start of the next edition.

The Notice of Race is unveiled today,  six months in advance of the previous edition’s NoR publication and some three years before the start, in order to provide visibility and transparency on the rules of participation to all contenders.

Applications open at D - 1000 before Departure

Applications for the 10th Vendée Globe will open on February 14, 2022, so at D - 1000 from the Start which is set for November 10, 2024.

In the previous edition, 37 candidates officially applied. This record might well be broken again by October 2, 2023 which is the closing date for applications.

A reinforced qualification pathway

There is no race more demanding than the Vendée Globe and the first duty of the SAEM Vendée, as organiser, is to ensure the safety of the sailors but also to allow as many people as possible to finish the race.

The Vendée Globe is once again fully involved in the IMOCA Globe Series Championship, the primary objective of which is to allow skippers to accumulate experience and increase the reliability of their boats by completing miles in the various races of the Championship.

2020 was the first success in that direction, with three-quarters of the fleet arriving at the finish, compared to the ‘normal’ of around half, an historic first.
In order to maintain this impetus it is important to strengthen the qualifying criteria for the race:

• Qualify the boat that will do the Vendée Globe
• Start 2 solo qualifying races for the Globe Series Championship, including one before the end of 2023 and one in 2024.
• Finish one of these qualifying races within the allotted time (race time less than or equal to that of the first finisher in the race plus 50%).

Maximum of 40 racers will be selected for the 10th edition

If there are many candidates, places at the start of the next edition will be limited. Selection criteria have been laid down in order to be able to decide between the projects which will take the start of this 10th edition.

The selection based on Miles established during the previous edition and in line with the Globe Series Championship is renewed. The selected skippers will therefore be those who have covered the most Miles during the Championship selection rounds, the first of which, the Transat Jacques Vabre 2021, starts in less than a month.

It should be noted that the two-handed races - such as the Transat Jacques Vabre - will count half of the miles covered by the skipper.

In an effort to internationalize and open opportunities to female skippers in offshore racing, The Ocean Race 2022 is part of the Championship selection programme, with each skipper then scoring a quarter of the miles sailed within a limit of 5,000 miles.

In order to promote technological innovation and not penalize new boat projects, the first 13 skippers with a new boat taking the start of a qualifying race will be directly selected.

Finally, the SAEM Vendée gives itself the opportunity, as organiser, to invite up to 1 additional skipper from among the registrants, bringing the maximum number of starters to 40.

Download the full Notice of Race #VG2024 below

After 24 months of research, development, and construction, 11th Hour Racing Team has unveiled its new IMOCA 60, the first of a new era of boats designed to compete in fully crewed, short-handed and solo offshore sailboat races. There has been Irish input too, with County Kerry round the World sailor Damian Foxall, Sustainability Program Manager at 11th Hour Racing Team, providing a full 'Life Cycle assessment' over the course of the build.

A product of Guillaume Verdier’s design studio and built at CDK Technologies in the home of offshore yacht racing in Brittany, France, the new IMOCA 60 blends sporting performance with sustainable construction practices, and state-of-the-art boat building technology.

The hull was rolled out of CDK Technologies’ build shed in Port-la-Fôret, France on Saturday, August 7 and will head to MerConcept in Concarneau for its foils to be fitted along with other final touches. The boat’s colorful design, created in collaboration with two of Italy’s leading designers - Marco and Stefano Van Orton - and France’s Jean-Baptiste Epron - will be unveiled in full when the boat sails for the first time at the end of August.

Where IMOCA 60s are traditionally designed for the typical downwind course of the solo Vendée Globe, the 11th Hour Racing Team boat has been optimized for the broader range of conditions expected in The Ocean Race, which will cross the equator four times in the 2022-23 edition.

Featuring an entirely closed cockpit design, the new IMOCA 60 allows up to five sailors to live and work under the protection of its cover for the majority of time spent offshore. Thanks to its innovative shape, the cockpit provides near-360 degree visibility, further enhanced via a refined auto-pilot, navigation system, cameras, and marine mammal deterrence system.

11th Hour Racing’s new IMOCA is rolled out of the shed at CDK Technologies in Port La Foret to see sunlight for the first time.

Also to be revealed in the coming weeks will be the culmination of two years - and several iterations - of foil design, tested both in the simulator and on the team’s first IMOCA 60, known as 11.1.

Striving to inspire action within the marine industry and beyond, the new 11th Hour Racing Team IMOCA 60 is seeking to set a benchmark for boat building innovations by utilizing alternative materials like flax for hatches, interior and deck panels, and implementing sustainable practices including stakeholder working groups and supply chain engagement, along with a highly analytical life cycle approach while supporting the creation of new IMOCA Class sustainability rules.

Skipper Charlie Enright was excited about the launch: “We’ve designed a version of the IMOCA 60 that no one has ever built before. Our boat should be able to withstand the toughest conditions in the most remote corners of the world, but is also able to compete in various shorthanded configurations. To build an all-around-performer like this, we have worked with the best in the trade: Guillaume Verdier as the lead naval architect, the technical and performance experts at MerConcept, and the build team at CDK Technologies. Running this project during a global pandemic was definitely a challenge, however, one constant never changed: putting sustainability at the center of the whole process.”

Damian Foxall, Sustainability Program Manager at 11th Hour Racing Team, explained more about this sustainability-first approach: “You can’t manage what you can’t measure - and what you can’t measure, can’t be improved. This is why we have executed a full Life Cycle Assessment over the course of the build process, in order to determine the environmental impact of the different components and procedures. Based on this evidence, we can work out different ways to reduce our impact, such as substituting highly-polluting materials with new alternatives, reducing single-use elements, optimizing our supply chain and internal operations, and refining the boat’s actual shape to make it more energy-efficient.

“Sharing our findings with the rest of the industry, from boat builders to sailors to race organizers, is an essential part of our mission, in order to inform the future and push the paradigm shift we urgently need. We have only 8 years left to meet the requirements of the Paris Agreement to reduce our impact by 50%. Business as usual is no longer an option.”

Durability has been a crucial factor in reducing the IMOCA 60’s overall footprint without compromising on performance and safety. Adaptable to both short-handed and fully-crewed racing, the boat in its current setup has been optimized to race with up to five sailors. The boat’s race schedule includes the upcoming Défi Azimut (raced double-handed with a non-sailing onboard media crew member), the Transat Jacques Vabre (double-handed), and The Ocean Race 2022-23 (four sailors and one sailing onboard media crew member).

“Winning The Ocean Race is our ultimate goal,” said Mark Towill, CEO of 11th Hour Racing Team. “These past months have been a huge collaborative effort, connecting a multitude of different stakeholders across the globe to build a boat that is completely different from what this Class has known so far. We are challenging the status quo and aiming to do it as sustainably as possible and sharing these learnings with the wider marine community. We are all extremely proud to see the boat leave the shed and are incredibly grateful to everyone for their hard work.”

Supported by sponsor 11th Hour Racing, the Team is looking to inspire other teams, race organizers and marine businesses to take action by starting their own sustainability journey. "The marine environment is harsher than any other, even outer space; the salt, wind, sun, and incredible force of water work to corrode, break down, or tear apart everything onboard," noted Jeremy Pochman, co-founder and CEO, 11th Hour Racing. "If the sustainable materials used in building the Team's new IMOCA can survive these conditions, then it's clear we can use such materials in less demanding boats, and the advances could ripple out through other industries that deal with far less harsh environments. This is a remarkable milestone as we work to change the narrative around sustainability in the marine and maritime industries, and in everyday life."

Leading up to the new boat’s naming ceremony scheduled for September 13, 11th Hour Racing Team will release a series of content features, including videos and photos, giving detailed insight into the new IMOCA 60’s unique design, artwork, and innovation processes.

Almost six months after the first skippers crossed the Vendée Globe finish line already the tenth edition, starting November 2024, is on everyone's mind. And the enthusiasm stemming from the last edition is significant, already there are around 45 sailors who are wanting to be on the starting line in just over three years time. And so here is a round-up of the state of play as we go into summer, knowing of course that the clock is always ticking.

As regular readers know, there was a big interest from Ireland in the last race with four campaigns mentioned at one point but none ultimately made it to th 2020 startline.

Only one Irish boat has ever made it to the Vendee Globe start line and that was in the 2016 race when Galway sailor Enda O'Coineen made the Sable's D'Olonne line. His entry Kilcullen was dismasted off New Zealand in January 2017 and he never finished the race but, much to his credit, O'Coineen did complete the course sailing the boat home to France in April 2018 and becoming one of only a handful of Irish sailors to solo circumnavigate the globe.

The Vendée Globe has really never stopped. Yes, the finish line is crossed but the challenge is ongoing for many. Some skippers made no secret that during their last weeks on board they were already working to make their projects continue. "2024 is already only tomorrow", Romain Attanasio said during the latter days of his race.

For those who want to be competing at solo racing’s absolute pinnacle, re-immersing themselves in the most prestigious challenge is a "must".

According to figures from Figaro Nautisme, already 45 skippers would like to enter the next edition (there were 34 in 2020).

Here is a broad overview

THEY SHOULD START WITH A NEW BOAT 

The announcement came accompanied by a great fanfare in a massive TV studio in early May. Charal and Jérémie Beyou (13th in the last edition) announced the construction of a new IMOCA monohull. The new Charal 2 will be designed by Sam Manuard and is presented by the skipper as "a break with the rounded bow" and a "relatively easy, ergonomic and versatile" boat.

Boris Herrmann announced on this Vendée Globe site his desire to have a new boat, a VPLP design “We want to continue for the next 4 to 5 years,” he explained aiming for crewed The Ocean Race and the next Vendée Globe. In May he was already in a"full discussion on the design" and has a target of launching by next June. His boat is being built at the Vannes yard Multiplast, like that of Maxime Sorel who has also announced he will build new. The blond haired solo racer who was tenth in the Vendée Globe has a new sponsor, Chocolats Monbana alongside the continuation of the partnership with V and B and the area of Mayenne. He decided to have an Apivia sistership with MerConcept. This, he sees, is a way to give a new dimension to his project" while having "the assurance of having a boat ready as soon as it is launched, scheduled for June 2022".

Same too for Kevin Escoffie who will have a new PRB. Currently freelancing with Banque Populaire to sail in the Transat Jacques Vabre, the skipper announced at the end of May that he would carry on with PRB who have bought a new boat hull. They have in fact bought the hull of an IMOCA which was being built by Carrington Boats to a design by Guillaume Verdier. Escoffier is delighted with the advance in timing he gets from taking on a hull that is all but built and so he says it will "make the new PRB more reliable".

For his part, Armel Tripon, who no longer enjoys the support of L’Occitane en Provence, announced the construction of a new scow (a boat with a rounded bow), while resuming sailing and competing in the Ocean50 multihulls

THEY HAVE BOATS WHICH ARE NEW TO THEM
The ‘transfer window’ or the sales funnel if you like always goes on at the end of each edition, as skippers chase boats which will take their game up a level, or two. Just as he was after 2016-17 the one who got the ball rolling was Louis Burton. Third in the Vendée Globe, the Saint-Malo skipper acquired L’Occitane en Provence on which he is currently competing in The Ocean Race Europe. "It's like a dream, I'm discovering a new machine that makes me want to take on even more challenges," he explained during the launch of his newest boat;

Meantime Bureau Vallée 2 has found a happy buyer: Pip Hare. The effervescent Briton (19th in the last Vendée Globe) and her sponsor Medallia are lining up for a more competitive, faster more sporty boat, a “very efficient” boat, emphasizes the Briton.

At the beginning of May, we learned that Romain Attanasio was also going to experience the joys of sailing with foils. The sailor has acquired the Malizia IMOCA from Boris Herrmann (Seaexplorer-Yacht Club de Monaco) which he has put in its new colours thanks to the support of a new sponsor, Fortinet, which will be alongside Best Western.

THEY WILL START WITH THE SAME BOAT
Fabrice Amedeo is the first in this category. After retiring into South Africa he will go for a new cycle with the same boat. He benefits from new colours as the Nexans company has joined it.

Kojiro Shiraishi will also be on the same boat for his third participation. He announced in April that together with his sponsor, DMG-Mori. "The boat and I will set out to be faster and I will try to make the boat more comfortable to sail and improve the foils".

THEY WANT TO GO BACK BUT ...
The winner of the last edition, Yannick Bestaven, remains vague on his intentions, even if he assures us that his current boat is "almost sold". First to cross the line, second in the final standings, there is no doubt that Charlie Dalin will be part of the adventure again. He has been testing new foils, the uncertainty about his participation in 2024 boils down to one question: will he leave with the current revamped Apivia or with a new boat?

Same problem for Sam Davies (Initiatives Coeur). This is what she said to Tip & Shaft: “With the team and the partners, we are looking for a way to 'upgrade' for the next Vendée Globe. Nothing has been decided we are looking for the best possible solution. "

Alex Thomson (Hugo Boss) he has not formally announced anything but is believed to favour the creation of a new boat. Nicolas Troussel is not closing the door on the idea of building a boat either: "It will depend on what happens this year," he confided before taking part in The Ocean Race. Damien Seguin (Apicil Group), for his part, reaffirmed in the Journal du dimanche "wanting to sail a foiling boat from 2022 onwards".

Thomas Ruyant explained that his “history with the Vendée Globe is not over”, he is currently with LinkedOut until the Route du Rhum 2022. However, it is difficult to imagine him missing the next round the world and he also currently competing in The Ocean Race Europe. Among his teammates, there is Clarisse Crémer, 12th in the last Vendée Globe, who has reaffirmed her desire to participate again, without any official announcement having yet been made to that effect. Alexia Barrier is also said to be at the same stage.

Arnaud Boissières has also expressed his desire to participate in a 5th Vendée Globe. But the question is with which boat? On several occasions, he has expressed his desire to acquire Maître Coq IV, the boat of the winner and his friend, Yannick Bestaven. “More than ever I want to put a competitive, lasting imprint on the Vendée Globe,” he explained to Ouest-France. Isabelle Joschke also aspires to come back. However, the skipper who races in MACSF colours does not necessarily want to have a new boat, she told Voiles et Voiliers.

For his part, Alan Roura must deal with the withdrawal of his sponsor, La Fabrique. The Swiss sailor, however, remains particularly motivated to find new partners, as he told Voiles et Voiliers: "I am confident in my ability to convince sponsors to come on board with me". Sébastien Simon is also looking for partners as Arkéa Paprec leaves the adventure at the end of the year but will build a new boat for an as-yet undisclosed skipper.

At Miranda Merron, who also experienced the withdrawal of her sponsor, Campagne de France, the equation is more complicated. "Miranda would love to set off again on a Vendée Globe but without sponsors or substantial financial means, I don’t think it can happen," said Halvard Mabire to Voile et Voiliers.

THEY WANT TO PARTICIPATE 

A project is taking shape for Louis Duc. He who had recovered the IMOCA Fortil from Clément Giraud, damaged after a fire, has just announced the arrival of a first partner, the group of landscape gardeners Lantana Paysages. The adventurer Guirec Soudée, known for having sailed around the world with a hen is working on participation. He bought the IMOCA from Benjamin Dutreux (OMIA-Water Family, 9th). This is also the case for Antoine Cornic who has acquired the ex-Spirit of Canada (Derek Hatfield, Vendée Globe 2008).

Sébastien Josse has repeatedly reaffirmed his desire to be there. Yann Eliès, who has just completed the double-handed Transat, says "he has rediscovered his faith" and is aiming for "a boat of the 2020 generation or the previous generation", as he explained to Voiles et Voiliers. Violette Dorange, also entered in the double-handed Transat, expressed her willingness to set up a project and seek funding.

Two other participants on The Ocean Race Europe are also in the running: Justine Mettraux and Yoann Richomme. The Swiss sailor Mettraux who is cutting her teeth aboard 11th Hour Racing, is aiming for a "2nd or 3rd generation IMOCA". Finally, note that the names of Nicolas Boidezevi and Jorg Riechers are also cited for this next edition. Case to follow!

A round up of boats

2024 New Boats

• Sea Explorer for Boris Herrmann
• Eleventh Hour 2
• V&B Monbana-Mayenne for Maxime Sorel
• Charal 2 for Jérémie Beyou
• PRB for Kevin Escoffier

Generation 2020

• Bureau Vallée 3 for Louis Burton
• Corum L’Epargne
• DMG Mori
• Apivia
• Medallia (ex-Bureau Vallée 3) for Pip Hare
• Fortinet-BestWestern (ex- Sea Explorer) for Romain Attanasio
• Nexans-Art&Fenêtre for Fabrice Amedeo
• Prysmian Group for Giancarlo Pedote
• For sale : Arkea Paprec, Hugo Boss, Charal 1, Linkedout, Maître Coq

Generation 2014 

• Nandor Fa's boat

Generation 2013

• Team Germany, ex-Acciona
• Banque Populaire sold

Génération 2008

• Yes We Cam, La Mie Caline, Time For Océan, Omia Water Family sold
• Apicil for sale
• Merci de Sébastien Destremau
• Groupe Setin of Manu Cousin
• MACSF of Isabelle Jochke
• La Compagnie du Lit de Clément Giraud
• Campagne de France of Miranda Merron
• Plan Farr 2008 of Louis Duc
• V&B de Maxime Sorel
• La Fabrique of Alan Roura
• Spirit of Canada of Antoine Cornic
• Stark oj Ari Huusela (for sale)

Winner of the ninth Vendee Globe Race, Yannick Bestaven has embarked on an ambitious sporting dream: to win the Everest of the Seas twice in a row, the round-the-world sailing solo and non-stop.

Building on this objective, Maître CoQ has renewed its sponsorship for Bestaven and his sailing team.

A partnership contract was signed until June 2025, resulting in a new IMOCA yacht.

The construction of Maître CoQ V will begin in June 2021 in the boat building site of, CDK technologies, in Port-La-Forêt, for a launch one year later. It will be a Verdier plan, designed in the moulds of the 11th Hour 2 monohull.

Bestaven will start this season in two double-handed races, the Rolex Fastnet Race on August 8 in the waters of the Solent and November 8 in the Jacques Vabre transatlantic which will leave from Le Havre for Martinique.

Bestaven has called on a sailor who has supported him since the start of the Master CoQ project, Roland Jourdain to be his double-handed partner in both these races.

Almost six months after they competed in the world’s most brutal race — the singlehanded non-stop lap of the planet that is the Vendée Globe — many of the IMOCA fleet will be returning to the race course for the first time in August’s Rolex Fastnet Race.

Aside from the added attraction of the race now ending up in home waters, with the finish moving for the first time to Cherbourg, for the IMOCA teams the Royal Ocean Racing Club’s flagship event is also a qualifier for November’s Transat Jacques Vabre.

Running from Le Havre to Martinique (via Fernando di Noronha off Brazil), this event is double-handed and the world’s most advanced offshore monohulls will also sail in this configuration for the Rolex Fastnet Race.

The line-up is impressive. It includes Charlie Dalin on Apivia who was first home into Les Sables d’Olonne in late January, until Maître CoQ, skippered by Yannick Bestaven, subsequently became the race’s winner after he was awarded time compensation for his part in the rescue of Kevin Escoffier.

From the US, The Ocean Race team 11th Hour Racing has not one but two IMOCAs entered. This includes the 2016 vintage former HUGO BOSS, being campaigned by the mixed Anglo-Swiss crew of Volvo Ocean Race veteran Simon Fisher and Justine Mettraux.

Charlie Dalin, second in the last Vendée Globe aboard Apivia, is competing in the Rolex Fastnet Race | Credit: Maxime Horlaville/Disobey/Apivia

But all eyes could be on the campaign’s latest steed, to be sailed by American Charlie Enright and top French offshore sailor Pascal Bidégorry. Whether she will make it is in the balance: the launch of this new Guillaume Verdier design, built by CKD Technologies and project managed by Francois Gabart’s company MerConcept, is scheduled for the end of July, leaving precious little work-up time before the 8 August start.

Significantly this will be the first new flying IMOCA launched with The Ocean Race in mind, rather than the Vendée Globe. However, Enright, who two years ago was outright winner of the Rolex Fastnet Race as sailing master on the Askew brothers’ VO70 Wizard, explains they are hedged.

“In some ways we are optimised for both crewed and shorthanded racing, and in other ways we have definitely compromised to be able to wear both hats in this fleet. It is the first IMOCA built with The Ocean Race as its primary objective,” he said.

What this means in terms of the specifics of the new hardware, we will have to wait and see. Theoretically with the potential to trim the foils more regularly, they could be more optimised and less draggy than the present generation foils.

For sure it will require more interior and cockpit space to accommodate four crew plus a media crewman and it will be interesting to see the degree to which the cockpit is enclosed. There is also a tricky engineering balance to be reached in that the extra crew equals extra weight and righting moment and they can potentially drive the boat harder, but at the expense of extra structural weight, which in turn is bad for light airs foiling.

The first new flying IMOCA launched with the Ocean Race in mind — one of two boats entered by 11th Hour Racing | Credit: Amory Ross/11th Hour Racing

In with a strong chance of line honours is Britain’s Alex Thomson and HUGO BOSS. After leading the Vendée Globe fleet into the South Atlantic, HUGO BOSS in that race suffered structural damage to her bow and Thomson was subsequently forced to retire into Cape Town with “irreparable rudder damage”.

HUGO BOSS is back in the water with two new rudders and Thomson and his team in Gosport, UK are keen to prove the potential of their radical craft, the first IMOCA with a fully enclosed cockpit.

For Thomson, the Rolex Fastnet Race has played a major part in his sailing career: “I love the Rolex Fastnet Race. I got my sailing instructor [qualification] in 1994 and in 1995 I joined Britannia Sailing, who were the first people to do amateur ‘pay to play’ racing, and did my first Fastnet within a few months of joining them. I didn’t know it at the time, but that was when I found out that offshore was what I loved to do.”

After winning the 1998-99 Clipper Round the World Race, it was in the 2003 Rolex Fastnet Race that Thomson first raced under the colours of HUGO BOSS. With their subsequent support he has gone on to become Britain’s most successful Vendée Globe skipper, podiuming on two occasions.

Of his past Rolex Fastnet Races, Thomson recalls: “My first was in 1995 on a Sigma 36 and it took us more than seven days. The most painful one was when it took us the four days on an IMOCA in 2005!”

The Rolex Fastnet race has played a major part in Alex Thomson’s career and he will compete with HUGO BOSS | Credit: Alex Thomson Racing

Sam Davies, the British Vendée Globe and Volvo Ocean Race skipper, says that the Rolex Fastnet Race inspired her as a teenager growing up in Portsmouth: “As a kid I remember seeing all these boats, the Admiral’s Cuppers, the maxis — the best of the best boats there in Solent to do the Fastnet Race. Hearing the stories from the 1979 race made it even more awe-inspiring. And it seemed just so far! How could people do a race that long?! That’s funny now.”

This will be Sam’s ninth Rolex Fastnet Race, a long way from her first when she was 19 with the parents of top pro sailor Gerry Mitchell on their Jeanneau Sun Legende 41.

“It was a good family-owned racing boat where the husband and wife sailed all the races together. We did all the RORC races and qualifiers — it was very competitive,” she recalled.

At the time Mitchell was en route to the 1993-94 Whitbread Round the World Race on the Dolphin & Youth Whitbread 60 and occasionally he and some of his talented friends would join them. The experience of racing with the Mitchells and the chance to meet future and existing legends of the sport all helped set Sam on track for her future career.

It is for this reason that she feels great pride returning to the Solent on board her state of the art race boat as a major wheel within the world’s most significant offshore fleet. This time she will be racing her IMOCA Initiatives Coeur with French Solitaire du Figaro winner Nicolas Lunven.

Also significant for Sam is that racing in the same part of the IMOCA fleet will be her partner Romain Attanasio. He recently secured funding for his next IMOCA campaign with Fortinet-Best Western and has acquired Boris Herrman’s IMOCA, originally the 2016 vintage Edmond de Rothschild.

“There is a group of us — me, Isa [Joscke on MACSF], SiFi and Jojo [Simon Fisher and Justine Mettraux on 11th Hour Racing] and Romain — on old boats that have been optimised. I am looking forward to that race.”

Sam Davies, the British Vendée Globe and Volvo Ocean Race skipper, was inspired by the Rolex Fastnet Race from a young age | Credit: Maxime Horlaville/polaRYSE/Initiatives-Coeur

Sam says the likely IMOCA winners will be the latest generation boats, all of which at least started the last Vendée Globe and which their skippers know better than ever.

The latest generation of foilers come into their own in 12 knots, at which point they foil when the older generation do not. However while they are optimised for the round the world course, to the extent that some are not great upwind, a course like the Rolex Fastnet Race’s could benefit older more all-round boats.

“If we get a light spot or a tricky spot, if it is downwind spinnaker sailing and we are more in the water than out, then all our group of boats will still be in with a chance. That is the good thing about the Rolex Fastnet Race because it is coastal, and tricky racing and there’s tides, it’s summer so there’s probably light winds at some point,” she said.

The latest generation IMOCAs competing currently include Hugo Boss, Apivia, Sebastien Simon’s ArkeaPaprec and Nicolas Troussel’s CORUM L’Epargne, which is currently competing in The Ocean Race Europe. Another to watch will certainly be Jérémie Beyou and Chris Pratt on board Charal, which returns as the defending champion in the IMOCA class.

“This is the first event of the season for us,” says Beyou. “It’s a good rehearsal for the Transat Jacques Vabre on a sporting level and also to prepare the team. We have to be ready for the delivery, the stand-by in Cherbourg, the choice of sails, etc — the whole pre-race routine that's important to test.

“It’s a race we won two years ago, so we hope to do as well, but there are a lot of people and it will be a bit tricky at the start exiting the Solent. There’s a lot to avoid, but it’s great fun, a great show and we’re going to enjoy it too.”

Thirty-one of the 33 skippers who competed in the 9th Vendée Globe mustered in Les Sables-d'Olonne today for the official prize-giving and closing ceremony which saw Yannick Bestaven (Maître-CoQ) receive top award as the overall winner.

There were two further key announcements, the 10th edition will leave from Les Sables d’Olonne on November 10, 2024 and the sailors should finally have a chance to meet with race fans later this year, at a popular festival to be organised on Saturday, September 25, 2021!

This ninth 9th edition was celebrated today Saturday 22 May in the Espace des Atlantes, in Les Sables-d'Olonne. The health situation in France means crowds were strictly limited and it was a relatively muted affair compared to previous years. But the smiles were broad and the laughter audible as the skippers met up for the first time since the start last year, and had a great chance to finally share memories in person.

31 of the 33 skippers entered in the 9th Vendée Globe were there. Only Boris Herrmann (Seaexplorer - Yacht Club de Monaco) and Alex Thomson (HUGO BOSS) could not come. Pip Hare (Medallia, already on her way to the next edition) and Ari Huusela (Stark) both made it to Les Sables d’Olonne.

For Yannick Bestaven (Maître-CoQ) the winner, the day started in an atmosphere more reminiscent of Hollywood as the 2020-2021 champion added his handprints to the Remblai winners where Armel Le Cléac'h (2016- 2017) who he succeeds and those of, François Gabart (2012-2013), Michel Desjoyeaux (2000-2001, 2008-2009), Vincent Riou (2004-2005), Christophe Auguin (1996-1997), Alain Gautier (1992- 1993) and Titouan Lamazou (1989-1990).

The programme featured an hour-long TV show, broadcast on vendeeglobe.org and social media. Skippers recounted their memories, the highlights including Jérémie Beyou talking of his changed perspective on racing round the world, Clément Giraud talking of his voyage of self discovery, but also the rescue of Kevin Escoffier relived and of course that epic, close battle to the finish line.

Quotations from the Vendee Globe Organiser & Competitors

Yves Auvinet (President of the Vendée Globe):
“We are staying the course: there will indeed be a Vendée Globe in 2024! And if all goes well, the start will be given on Sunday, November 10, 2024 at 1:02 p.m. We are extremely frustrated to have organized this Vendée Globe with a lot of it on camera only and not in person but we are meeting on Saturday September 25 to celebrate, if conditions allow, with all the public, our heroes of the Vendée Globe 2020-2021 ”.

Yannick Bestaven (Maître CoQ IV):
“Winning has changed a lot of things, finishing the Vendée Globe. is already a victory. The second win was to have a partner, who trusted me and my team. And, over the course of the race, the ambitions came. I never said to myself that I had secured the victory: there were so many twists! It wasn't until the finish line was crossed that I knew I had won. I want to get back out on the water, but on the Vendée Globe? I don't know yet, we'll see ”.

Charlie Dalin (Apivia):
"This here today is the last event of this edition! It's been something great today to be able to look back at the channel, the port, the finish line. I had only spent 20 days at sea before this race and so I discovered a lot of things.”

Louis Burton (Bureau Vallée 2):
"Certainly the notion of surpassing oneself is very strong in sailing. When we meet a few weeks later, everyone has a great story to tell. The Vendée Globe is sailing competition at the very top level."

Boris Herrmann (Seaexplorer - Yacht Club de Monaco):
“The Vendée Globe is more than a race. Between us, there are stronger bonds between humans than between us as competitors."

Giancarlo Pedote (Prysmian Group): 

"It's a strong emotion! The first thing I did this morning when I got here was come and see the way out the channel. All the memories flood back. We had the chance to experience something intense in emotions, exceptional. I had lots of meetings, and that's also the richness of an event like that. What unites us: the same emotions, the same difficulties”.

Stéphane le Diraison (Time for Oceans):
"This Vendée Globe is so intense that I felt like I was living in another dimension. Coming back here reactivates all these beautiful emotions. It’s nice to see the faces of everyone with whom I have shared this adventure. And I'm coming back as a finisher, yes, I was so keen to come back to the end of the story! "

Didac Costa (One Planet One Ocean):
“As it was my second edition, I was able to enjoy my surroundings more. The circumstances of life mean that I took advantage of my passion for the Vendée Globe before very quickly returning to my professional life (Didac is a firefighter in Barcelona), that's how it is, life is like that ".

Kojiro Shiraishi (DMG Mori Global One):
“I really wanted to complete this world tour not only for my mentor Yukoh Tada, but also for all the Japanese people. I must continue to race offshore for them too and open up this future to them”.