Marseille (AFP)

Launched at full power to fly over the water at 95 km / h under the dumbfounded gaze of the spectators installed on the dike in Marseille: it is the show offered by SailGP, new sailing circuit, which has concluded Sunday with the richly endowed victory of the Australians.

A million dollars (907,000 euros)! Australia, led by star Tom Slingsby, pocketed the award promised to the winner of the SailGP, a water fight between six teams (Australia, Japan, China, Great Britain, France, USA) declined in 5 stages (Sydney, San Francisco, New York, Cowes and Marseille) and played on board new generation gear, ultra-fast flying catamarans (F50).

This competition, entirely funded by the multi-billionaire American Larry Ellison who made available for each of the 6 teams a budget of 5 million dollars (4.5 million euros), was thought to be a show with a way resolutely modern to live the sail.

"These boats are extraordinary boats, this is the first time we've been sailing in a group, it's the 21st century, it's good, it's no longer the sail" AFP Franck Citeau, coach of the Blues, who signed Sunday their first victory in the race to finish 5th overall.

- Formula One -

"The public has the impression to discover this sport, sailing, people did not imagine that boats could fly.In the head of the French, sailing is a departure, an arrival and we do not see what happens between the two, it's the opposite, we are on the edge of the public, for the public and around the public ", continues the coach for whom" Larry Ellison has managed his bet, bring the flight everywhere ".

Raised 2 meters above the water with foils (appendages), the F50s run at full speed with peaks at 50 knots (95 km / h). They take off as soon as they reach 16 knots (29 km / h).

The races are contested with the contact, like the races of the Formula One. The same start for the six boats, each with 5 sailors on board.

At this game and for this first edition, Tom Slingsby, Olympic champion and five-time world champion in laser, was the best. His teammate Jason Waterhouse was delighted.

"It's not just a one-on-one race, it's more exciting than that, the boats are so close all the time, and there are the best sailors in the world on this circuit," he said. Happy Waterhouse.

The Australian has only thought of victory since the first stage in February. Keeping, however, in the corner of the head the spoils of a million dollars, unusual in sailing.

"I'll be stupid to say I did not think about it, but it's the icing on the cake, we try to hide it and not think about it, but basically everyone thinks about it!" he confesses.

© 2019 AFP