In Sables d'Olonne,
Welcome on the water
“I am happy to have crossed the finish line of this Vendée Globe in the lead.
It was a hell of a race, a hell of an adventure with a lot of emotion.
I go from alone on my boat to a cloud of boats, it's really special.
It comes with a snap of a finger without transition.
I knew there were people there but I was surprised by the welcome. ”
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“There were quite a few twists and turns.
I've had ups and downs, quite a bit of DIY too.
It's a great experience, I crossed the Indian Ocean, the Pacific, crossed my first Cape Horn… The other day, I redid my tracks, I remembered each maneuver, each decision.
It bothered me just thinking about it!
This countless number of gybes and actions.
If I had been given the to-do list before I left, I would have told myself that I could never get over it.
The list is too big!
In the end, we manage to do the impossible. ”
His foil damage known to Australia
“The most difficult thing was the loss of the wedge of my port foil.
I thought my race was over.
I was in the lead, I see water coming in .. I never had water to go in there… The invasion alarm sounded, the foil well was full of water.
I realized that the foil was moving in all directions.
I collapsed.
I called Antoine Carraz, my project manager.
I really believed that I would end up in New Zealand or Australia, that it was over.
Then there was this incredible day of work, from sunrise to sunset. ”
A race that changes a man
“The storm in the Indian was something really tough.
I was relieved when the wind finally died down but there I lost my second aerial after the first in the descent of the Atlantic.
I said to myself "it's not possible, I won't be able to do it".
I ended up overcoming all these difficulties and there were many.
The race was good.
It was a great battle with Thomas (Rettant), Louis (Burton) at the end and Yannick (Bestaven).
It was truly a magical race.
Of course it changed me, I don't know how, but it gives so many incredible emotions, a force that I had never felt.
It will have an impact on me, my way of thinking, of seeing things.
I'm a fairly stable person in terms of emotion, that's a bit of my strength.
But the Vendée Glove is so strong and powerful.
I went through a lot of emotions: joys, doubts, sadness at times, empty passages.
Even if they've never been too long, it would be a lie to say that I didn't have one. "
Bonuses and the victory that could escape him
“It's special (to be the first to arrive without being declared the winner) even though I'm used to running the lap times on the Solitaire du Figaro.
It doesn't leave me!
Normally, the Vendée Globa does not go like that.
The stopwatch has started.
Hope it goes well for me.
We'll see in a few hours.
It's normal that they (Bestaven, Herrmann) had bonuses (for having turned away in the Escoffier rescue operation).
If it had been me, I would have done it without hesitation.
I would have had to go back, that's why the race management didn't ask me.
But I wouldn't have hesitated.
It is quite normal that runners who have lost their way benefit from bonuses.
There is no problem, it's part of the sport, it's the solidarity of the sailors.
There is no controversy.
I crossed the finish line in the lead, no one can take it away from me.
Line honors, Line honors as the English say, are for me.
The rest will only be a bonus ”.
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