The start of the fourth and last stage of the Solitaire du Figaro was given on Sunday at 4 p.m. from the bay of Morlaix.
To the applause of the public, the 34 engaged sailors embarked on a long journey towards Saint-Nazaire, where the grand final will take place.
The competitors are currently facing the Channel.
This Monday morning, Maël Garnier, Tom Dolan and Philippe Hartz opted for the west route between the DST and the Scilly.
A battle plan that has not changed for Philippe Hartz: “
We were quite close after the course in the bay of Morlaix and the bulk of the fleet decided to get into the grain, in the pea puree. Everyone luffed, and I decided to stay on my way. I did what I had initially decided to do, which is not to let myself be influenced, and it seems to be paying off. Since we left the Brittany coast, we have been under a high mainsail and large spinnaker and with 12-13 knots of wind. It's a little better than expected. I hadn't expected it to be this stable. I slept quite a bit last night, I'm fresh! We are near the tip of Cornouaille, we must now negotiate the DST and then proceed to the Fastnet. We didn't have too much traffic, I wasn't bothered, it went in front and behind. VS'is a bit of an algae war, but these are good conditions, it's not cold!
"
Xavier Macaire, the head this morning at Land's End passage, chose a different strategy by targeting the tip of Cornwall to overflow by Longships lighthouse.
A final stage which could reach 685 miles and thus, beat the record held rallying Dingle to Hendaye in 2001 with 649 miles.
The arrival of this 4th stage will determine the winner of this 52nd 2021 edition of the Solitaire du Figaro.
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