"It's a historic moment for offshore racing because, on the one hand, we have the French culture of the Vendée Globe and on the other Anglo-Saxon sailing", rejoiced Antoine Mermod, president of the class. Imoca.

The longest sailing race on the planet, The Ocean Race, born in 1973 under the name Whitbread Round the World Race, has revealed or confirmed exceptional skippers since its creation, such as New Zealanders Peter Blake and Grant Dalton and the American Paul Cayard.

Subsequently becoming Volvo Ocean Race, it was bought in 2018 by two Swedes, Johan Salen and Richard Brisius, and renamed The Ocean Race.

For the first time, it is the Imoca, famous sailboats of the Vendée Globe, which will be the stars.

"It's the first opportunity to see these boats sailing to their full potential as a crew," said Phil Lawrence, race director since 2016. solo, the performance potential of the boats is enormous".

An international epic

From 1:10 p.m. GMT (2:10 p.m. French time) on Sunday, these five sailboats and their five sailors on board - including at least one woman - will fight a merciless battle across the most inhospitable seas on the globe.

From Alicante, the competitors will go to Cape Verde, then Cape Town (South Africa), Itajai (Brazil), Newport (United States), Aarhus (Denmark), The Hague (Netherlands) before finishing their trip to Geneva.

An epic of 32,000 nautical miles (60,000 km) which can just as well come to a sudden stop on material breakage or after a collision with a cetacean, a submerged container or a small iceberg in the seas of the Great South.

With 12,750 miles to cover in the South Seas - a record for the ocean race - for almost a month of navigation, the 3rd leg of The Ocean Race, between Cape Town (South Africa) and Itajai (Brazil), is the one that worries the most on the pontoons of Alicante.

The fleet is made up of Team Malizia skippered by the German Boris Herrmann, the American team 11th Hour Racing Team and its skipper Charlie Enright, and three French teams - Guyot Environnement-Team Europe led by Benjamin Dutreux, Biotherm helmed by Paul Meilhat and Holcim-PRB skippered by Kevin Escoffier, who competed in the race twice.

Human adventure

"It's a race that is so long and trying that the key lies a lot in the human. We live in a small space and difficult conditions for six months. We have to help each other in the event and above all have fun “, commented Paul Meilhat.

The Ocean Race crews during the In-Port race, January 8, 2023 in Alicante © JOSE JORDAN / AFP

"I'm sure we'll have some great races with fast and also very impressive boats. We'll be going to cities that have never seen so many monohulls fly and I think they'll be very happy to see us do some +wheelies+ “, said Kevin Escoffier.

The five Imocas at the start are equipped with foils, these side appendages which allow the boat to rise above the water and spin at crazy speeds.

All sailboats are in a position to win before kick-off on Sunday.

"We all have different assets and with this boat, it will be a question of finding how to best use them and also to fit everyone in the cockpit", laughs Annie Lush (Guyot Environnement-Team Europe), former British Olympic sailor, participating for the 3rd time.

The start of this race, which usually takes place every three years, has been postponed twice due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The last edition, contested in 2017/2018, was won by the Dongfeng team (China), led by the French skipper Charles Caudrelier, after 126 days of racing.

© 2023 AFP