The Vendée Globe organizers are preparing for a historic and dantesque round-the-world finish in the middle of next week in Les Sables d'Olonne.
The first estimates (ETA for estimated time of arrival), communicated this Thursday, confirm a fine traffic jam on the finish line since the race management announces no less than five boats for the day of January 27 “including SeaExplorer-Yacht Club of Monaco (Boris Herrmann), Apivia (Charlie Dalin), Maître CoQ IV (Yannick Bestaven), Bureau Vallée 2 (Louis Burton) and LinkedOut (Thomas Roût) ”.
In camera arrivals
Four other boats should in turn cross the finish line in front of the large beach of the Vendée seaside resort on January 28: Groupe Apicil (Damin Seguin), Prysmian Group (Giancarlo Pedote), Yes We Cam!
(Jean Le Cam) and Omia-Water Family (Benjamin Dutreux).
In addition, the organization has confirmed that the arrivals of this ninth edition will be behind closed doors.
A first in the history of touring the world.
A heartbreak also for the sailors, usually welcomed as heroes by tens of thousands of people along the channel.
Remember that the start had already been given without an audience on November 8.
At the score of 3:00 p.m. Thursday, Charlie Dalin (Apivia) still appeared in the lead but Louis Burton (Bureau Vallée) went much faster in bypassing the Azores high, at nearly 19 knots over the last four hours (against 12, 5 in Apivia), placed on its port foil in good working order unlike others (Dalin, Rouillard).
Further from the direct route than his comrades, the Malouin still only appeared in 4th place (+108) behind Dalin, Boris Herrmann (+77) and Thomas Rettant (+88.5).
5th (+129), Yannick Bestaven hangs on a Maître CoQ who sticks out his tongue.
"Everything remains possible between us, it will be super interesting"
Yannick Bestaven
“(I want to) Already finish in the Top 5, afterwards, I know the podium is going to be difficult, but it is still playable.
In front of me, they are not very far, Thomas (Rettant, LinkedOut) is in fourth place, not far in front of me, he is handicapped with his foil, I am faster than him;
Boris (Herrmann, Seaexplorer - Yacht Club de Monaco) is going fast, he is coming back to Charlie Dalin (Apivia), and there is Louis (Burton, Bureau Vallée) who makes a nice spoon on the left, that can be interesting for him if he catches the southwest wind first.
Everything remains possible between us, it will be super interesting, the result will also depend on the capacity of the boats downwind, I do not know if everyone will be 100% in these conditions ”, warns the Rochelais who prefers not yet think about the upheavals that the compensation obtained after the rescue operation of Kevin Escoffier could cause (10:16 a.m. for him, 4:15 p.m. for Le Cam and 6 a.m. for Herrmann. "It's complicated, because you have to look at each one, I don't want to let myself be distracted by that, we will do the accounts once I have crossed the line! "
Score Thursday at 3:00
p.m .
:
1. Charlie Dalin (FRA / Apivia) 2.115 miles from the finish
2. Boris Herrmann (GER / Seaexplorer-Yacht Club de Monaco) 77 miles from the
leader 3. Thomas Rettant (FRA / LinkedOut) 88
4. Louis Burton (FRA / Bureau Vallée 2) 108
5. Yannick Bestaven (FRA / Maître Coq IV) 129
6. Damien Seguin (FRA / Apicil Group) 134
7. Giancarlo Pedote (ITA / Prysmian Group) 179
8. Jean Le Cam (FRA / Yes we Cam!) 314
9. Benjamin Dutreux (FRA / OMIA-Water Family) 367
10. Maxime Sorel (FRA / V And B Mayenne) 612
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