© Anne Beaugé / Retour à La Base

They said :

Sam Davies, GBR (Initiatives Coeur):“It’s been a really long time since I did a solo race. The last one, I broke my boat. I feel like I've forgotten how to do solo. But I have an excellent boat! I have nothing needed really in miles or selection, I am doing this race for myself and with only fifth places so far this year, I intend to be in the match.” 

Yoann Richomme, FRA, (Paprec Arkéa):“The boat arrived in Fort-de-France with some damage. My team has done a fabulous job from the moment it docked to strengthen it. This will be my first solo racing in an IMOCA and I therefore in this race I have a real qualification challenge. If I finish it, I will be calmer next year. It will also be my first transatlantic race from west to east with conditions close to those of the Vendée Globe: going against the depressions. This course is particularly good for that. I intend to keep an eye on Jérémie Beyou (Charal) who has an exemplary preparation with good optimisation of their boat. Nicolas Lunven (Holcim PRB) too has a dangerous boat, very efficient, very light, with a calm and determined skipper, and Sam Davies too, in short, there will be a great battle between us all!” 

Benjamin Ferré, FRA, (Monnoyeur Duo For A Job):“I am delighted to finish this season with this solo race. If we are a bit behind with our daggerboard boats, we have our performance objective while telling the human stories. At the moment, I feel like I'm between two lives, in the morning I'm in race preparation mode, but I also have lots of friends in Class40 who aren't going racing and with whom I want to spend some time.” 

Jérémie Beyou FRA, (Charal): “The first week, we worked quite a bit on the boat then I took a break from Saturday, without any particular physical preparation. The effects of the Transat Jacques Vabre are still lingering. Such a close start between two races I remember a long time ago. You have to pay attention to everything and at the same time not put too much pressure on yourself.”