In 2009, already in the Vendée Globe, Vincent Riou, former skipper of PRB, rescued Jean Le Cam, himself Kevin Escoffier's savior during the night from Monday to Tuesday.
A story of unique men, which inevitably creates links.
Jean Le Cam who is going to rescue Kevin Escoffier, did that bring back any memories?
VINCENT RIOU.
It especially reassured me that it was Jean who was going, he was someone who had experience and a lot of composure.
It was also a very difficult time for him, the rescue did not happen on its own.
It is physically and morally trying.
The world of sailing is a small community, people know each other and there is bound to be a lot of affection.
The affective is also the most complicated element to manage.
The technique, the maneuvers, that's one thing;
what is especially complex is to manage emotions linked to the fact that the sailor we are going to help is a close relative.
Does a rescue create links between the skipper and his savior?
They are stories of very strong men, rarely good memories for the people who lived them, even if it ended well.
But the bond that is created is extremely important, it is a rare human experience.
Is the survival protocol often tested?
We regularly have internships, we analyze all cases.
There, it happened so quickly that it is above all instinctive.
Kevin did not have time to think about it.
All the actions he took were focused solely on his survival.
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Vendée Globe: Peyron, Riou… previous rescues since 1989
What does this part of the world, relatively unknown to the general public, look like, where the accident took place?
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It is a great desert.
There are few places on the planet where you are told, “We cannot come and get you for so long.
On Monday, the first merchant ship circulating in the area would have taken twenty-four hours to reach Kevin.
And twenty-four hours is rather short.
In the middle of the Pacific, we can sometimes approach the week.
The luck that Kevin had is that we are at a point in the race when the fleet has not yet stretched too far, competitors were able to arrive quickly.
This boat that sank was yours for nine years, can we imagine what happened?
Given the speed of the incident, I saw no other solution than the hull which had broken.
Kevin confirms it.
The structure is stressed very strongly when the boat is stuck in the waves.
This boat has been riding the waves for ten years, it is a proven boat.
The head of the race was in a part of the planet where the seas are particularly hard on machines.
The South Atlantic, the entrance to the Indian Ocean, south of the Cape of Good Hope is one of the most dangerous places in the world.
It could just be a wave a little steeper, a little shorter than another.
These are undoubtedly multiple factors which led to that, normally it is not possible that it breaks in this way.
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