The press release fell this Thursday morning from the organization of the race and their sponsor Sodebo.
It is a blow for the duo made up of Thomas Coville, winner of the event in 2017, and Thomas Rouxel, considered one of the main favorites for the final victory of the Transat Jacques Vabre.
Their maxi-trimaran Sodebo Ultim 3 crashed into an Ofni (unidentified floating object) in the night from Wednesday to Thursday, around 1 am, off the Moroccan coast, damaging one of the two foils.
The lateral appendages which allow boats to "fly" on the waves.
⏱ Ranking point - 8h
😢 Following his collision with a UFO last night, @Sodebo_Voile is relegated to the last position of the ultimate ranking.
🗺 ‣ https://t.co/lNSIyqCsh8#TransatJacquesVabre # RouteDuCafé |
@LH_LeHavre |
@RegionNormandie |
@cmtMartinique pic.twitter.com/8ZoW6wvRMA
- Transat Jacques Vabre (@TransatJV) November 11, 2021
Departing from Le Havre on Sunday, in front of a huge crowd of enthusiasts, bound for Martinique, the two sailors were in second position in the double-handed transatlantic at the time of the shock.
“They are safe and sound”, and safe in the boat, reassured their team and the organization of the race.
It is the starboard foil that would be damaged.
The organizers of the Transat Jacques Vabre authorize technical stopovers: Coville and Rouxel can therefore choose to go to a port to repair their foil, depending on the extent of the damage, then start the race again.
This is what Coville did during the Route du Rhum 2018 (solo transatlantic) with his old trimaran, seriously damaged on the front left arm.
He had resumed the race after six days of repairs in the port of La Coruña (Spain).
The five Ultim entered in the Transat Jacques Vabre - two of which left the shipyards in April and July - are back in a great multiclass offshore race after a catastrophic 2018 Route du Rhum.
The Ultim fleet is currently led by the trimaran of Franck Cammas and Charles Caudrelier (Maxi Edmond de Rothschild).
The 15th edition of the Transat Jacques Vabre, a bi-annual race, started Sunday from Le Havre to Fort-de-France with 79 boats divided into four classes (Ultim, Imoca, Ocean Fifty and Class40) and three different courses in class function.
After three days of racing, two boats have already abandoned: the Imoca (Vendée Globe boat) of Louis Burton and Davy Beaudart (Bureau Vallée 3) and of Justine Mettraux and Simon Fisher (11 th Hour Racing Team - Alaka'i), both having dismasted.
