Paris (AFP)

Two weeks from the finish, the suspense is relaunched on Tuesday in the Vendée Globe after the capture operated at the head of the fleet by Charlie Dalin, the new leader of a group of ten boats ready to do battle.

"I'm glad I got back to business so much! Four days ago I was 450 miles behind. If I had been told I would take the lead four days later, I wouldn't have it. believed, "welcomed Dalin on Tuesday, who remains cautious.

"It's a very small margin of advance: Thomas (Rettant) is 18 miles, Yannick (Bestaven) 25, there is little gap, but I'm happy to be in the game again. C 'it's great that there was an opportunity, ”he continued.

It was not really a surprise as it was stuck in a windless area which was not yet the case for rival boats, but Yannick Bestaven (Maître Coq IV) let go of the fleet, that he had been holding out for almost a month.

On Monday evening, Dalin took first place.

In the mid-day standings on Tuesday, he was advancing 9 nautical miles (17 km) over Damien Seguin (Groupe Apicil), who rose to second place in the standings to the detriment of Thomas Rouillard (LinkedOut), now fourth at 14 leader's nm (26 km).

- 'Nothing is done yet' -

Seguin, the first disabled navigator to circumnavigate the world alone, is ahead of Bestaven by 2.5 nm (5 km).

"It's a crazy thing. I don't have a lot of wind but I manage to extricate myself from this little hell off the coast of Brazil to climb up to second place, it's extra, I'm enjoying it, it's is top, ”Seguin said.

In addition to this quartet, other sailors have made a strong comeback in this leading group, notably Louis Burton (Bureau Vallée), who has made an incredible comeback in recent days to finish fifth, 26 nm (49 km) from Dalin.

"Nothing is over yet", knows full well Dalin, who had occupied the place of N.1 for several weeks before being dislodged on December 16 by Bestaven.

"As long as we have not recovered from the more constant wind, there will still be things going on. We can do the accounts during the next night (Tuesday to Wednesday). In the ranking of 5 hours Wednesday, we will know who has the best The condition of the boats will play out. I suspect that everyone is not 100%, nobody is, but who has what? We will see the performance when the wind is established, it is not no need to make conclusions now, "he warned.

- 'Roll my hen!'

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For its part, Bestaven accuses the blow and takes his troubles patiently while waiting to find the wind on Wednesday.

"We must not let ourselves be defeated, we must look ahead, there is still an Atlantic Ocean to cross before arriving at Les Sables, so things are going to happen. It's the race, it's the game. We have to accept all situations, there are more serious things, "Bestaven told AFP.

Dean of the race, Jean Le Cam (Yes We Cam!), With three completed Vendée Globes, knows that anything is possible.

"When François Gabart won in 2013, I was 5th or 6th and I was in Cape Verde when he was in Les Sables d'Olonne. Normally the first go. This year, it comes back from behind. After this There is light wind there, it's crosswind, trade winds, a little Doldrums, so things should go away. We will have to tackle hard and roll my hen! We are making a very fast ascent, "he said.

© 2021 AFP