- The Vendée Globe organizers favor the hypothesis of a departure on November 8th.
- A postponement of the round the world sailing is also possible, depending on the evolution of the health situation.
- It is certain that the start of the Vendée Globe will not be given behind closed doors.
“We are in total fog. And in the fog, we don't change anything. We keep the same course. Sébastien Destremau may be heading straight for an iceberg, but he keeps his faith. The Toulon skipper thinks that “there is no reason today to postpone the start of the Vendée Globe. This is the position of the organizers who "sail by sight", according to the metaphor used by Sébastien Destremau. “We will do everything to make sure that the departure takes place on November 8. This remains our preferred hypothesis, ”says a source highly placed in the organization.
On April 16, the SAEM Vendée sent a press release titled “the Vendée Globe stays the course. Four days later, Paprec Group boss Sébastien Petithuguenin threw a cobble in the Atlantic. He calls for the Vendée Globe 2020 to be postponed for a year, in the columns of the specialized media Tip & Shaft. For the title sponsor of Sébastien Simon, “whatever the evolution of the pandemic, I think the party will inevitably be a bit spoiled. "
Morally, I do not know if we will want that much to invite customers in November, I think there will be bankruptcies, many boxes will be in difficult conditions. "
Requested by 20 Minutes this week, Sébastien Petithuguenin maintains this position, while acknowledging that “the organizers are making the effort to listen to everyone, which is very good. »From Zoom videoconferences to WhatsApp calls , phones are bubbling. Some sponsors hope that the departure will take place on the scheduled dates. "We need an opportunity to dream, to escape," says Alexandre Fayeulle, head of Advens. The Vendée would have an extraordinary opportunity in November. "
"Everyone is asking questions"
His skipper Thomas Ruyant abounds: “We are lucky to have a late event in the sports season. It could be a great celebration, an event that can give back the banana for the future! But for now, some skippers are looking gray. Each Friday, the 35 registrants are briefed by the organizers, during videoconferences punctuated by concerns and stress.
The navigator Thomas Ruyant prepares the Vendée Globe despite the confinement via @ 20minutesSport https://t.co/fGLEeVkBto
- 20 Minutes Sport (@ 20minutesSport) April 29, 2020"Many of us have questions," says Sébastien Simon. Those whose contracts ended at the end of the Vendée Globe are worried, they hope that the start will continue in 2020. Everyone is asking questions. The Vendean sailor "hates being in the unknown" and is preparing for a departure on November 8. Deprived of navigation, he continues the weather training with the Finistère offshore racing center and does his physical preparation on his terrace, in videoconference with his coach.
A qualifying race this summer
In the workshop, activity was “greatly slowed down”. Sébastien Simon estimates that he “will be able to launch the boat in the third week of May. But the foils will not yet be delivered. Too bad: it will be necessary to test the IMOCA before the race which will serve as a dress rehearsal… And the terms of which have not yet been announced.
According to our information, the sailors will test themselves this summer, during a loop in the Atlantic Ocean - it will qualify those who are not yet. "These are not at all the conditions that we will meet on the Vendée Globe", plagues Sébastien Simon, who would have preferred to test his boat during the two usual transatlantic races at the start of the season. They were canceled due to the pandemic.
Reservations to attend the departure?
“Our sport is about coping with the unexpected. I'll find the resources, ”said skipper Armel Tripon. He “hopes that the departure will take place in November, but in good conditions for us and our sponsors. The organizers are thinking about it; local elected officials too. "We can have a village that is less spread out, open it longer to curb the flow," outlines LREM MP Stéphane Buchou. We can also set up a reservation system for the grand departure. "
In 2016, 1.5 million people gathered along the channel. Without social distancing, of course. This influx of population worries Stéphane Buchou:
Vendée has been less affected by the epidemic than other departments, so there is very little collective immunity. Our department could be particularly affected by a second wave this fall. "
For him, “a postponement of the race would probably be the least problematic. "One year, as claimed by the boss of Paprec Group? The organizers are considering this scenario without making it a priority. The intermediate hypothesis of a staggered departure of one month is also on the table, “without being privileged. One of the tracks is in any case excluded: that of a departure behind closed doors. “The Vendée Globe is a popular celebration. Communion with the public is fundamental, ”said the SAEM Vendée.
The mayor of Les Sables d'Olonne Yannick Moreau (DVD) also thinks that “we should be positive and not favor the postponement hypothesis, which would be the worst-case scenario. The town hall is therefore "in a classic logic of preparation", between renovation work and the decoration of the city center in the colors of "Vendée. "
"This year, it will be complicated to make com 'towards the general public", however believes Sébastien Destremau. The Toulon skipper, last in the 2016-17 Vendée Globe, remains optimistic about the economic viability of a Vendée Globe which would leave in November 2020.
"I have very good contacts with companies who anticipate that they will have a huge need to communicate internally this fall," says Sébastien Destremau. He is close to obtaining the signature of a skipper "who knows nothing about sailing" and whose company is currently paralyzed. “He is looking for a unifying project for next winter, enthuses the Toulon skipper. During the four months of the Vendée Globe, its employees will run to the office to follow their company's boat! "
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