Report validated for the Solo Maître Coq 2020
The Figaro racers will once again be able to enjoy the competition. The organisation Les Sables d'Olonne Vendée Course au Large had announced that they wanted to reschedule the event at a later date, with the competition scheduled for 13th March. And it's a done deal. In collaboration with the French Sailing Federation and the relevant authorities, the race has been rescheduled from 24th to 28th June.
This 340 mile race between Belle-Île, Ile d'Yeu and Ile de Ré will enable 30 skippers to measure themselves after a long period of inactivity. The start is scheduled for 25th June at 1300 hours off Les Sables-d'Olonne. Everyone is eager to get the bows smoking, starting with Xavier Macaire, the title holder and local of the leg, who intends to join Nicolas Lunve, in the very closed club of the double winners of the Solo Maître Coq.
"The epidemic situation seems to be getting much better and I take my hat off to the organisers and all those who fought to make the event finally happen. Although its format has been modified for safety reasons, we're nevertheless preparing for a great race which is very similar to a Solitaire du Figaro leg. It's very interesting technically and very good for lurking around. For my part, over the past few months, I've changed certain sails and I've got some new settings. I'm very keen to test all that in a situation. My aim is to double my lead, but it's always very hard in our discipline, as the level is very high and in each race, around ten competitors can claim victory. To win, you have to be in good shape, commit to a strategy and have a little bit of luck too."
A lot of people on the starting line
The competition will be tough with big names such as Yann Eliès (Morbic), Armel Le Cléac'h (Banque Populaire), Adrien Hardy (Ocean Attitude), Corentin Douguet (NF Habitat) and Gildas Mahé (Breizh Cola), but also fearsome outsiders such as Fabien Delahaye (Loubsol), Martin Le Pape (NC) and Pierre Quiroga (Skipper Macif 2019), Pierre Leboucher (Guyot environnement), Tom Laperche (Bretagne - CMB Espoir), Loïs Berrehar (Bretagne - CMB Performance), Tanguy Le Turquais (Quéguiner - Kayak), Alan Roberts (Seacat Services), Sam Goodchild (Leyton), Achille Nebout (BeGreen Ocean) and Erwan Le Draoulec (Skipper Macif 2020).
It will also be a first for many sailors, such as Kévin Bloch (Team Vendée Formation), Kenneth Rumball (RL Sailing), Nils Palmieri (Teamwork), Marc Mallaret (CER Occitanie), Elodie Bonafous (Bretagne - CMB Océane), Robin Follin (Club Nautique Sainte-Maxime), Robin Marais (Ma chance, moi aussi) and Violette Dorange (Devenir). For them, the stakes will be twofold: to find their feet on a new circuit and to qualify for the famous Solitaire.
