Sam Goodchild (Vulnerable) took the lead in the 10th edition of the Vendée Globe, Wednesday November 20, and was sailing at 7 o'clock, nearly 27 nautical miles ahead of his first pursuer Sébastien Simon (Groupe Dubreuil), before tackling the dreaded Doldrums, and its unpredictable weather. Yoann Richomme (Paprec Arkéa) completes the leading trio 34 miles from the Briton, just ahead of Charlie Dalin (Macif Santé Prévoyance).
Still leader on Monday, Jean Le Cam (Everything begins in Finistère – Armor-Lux), passed between Cape Verde and the African coasts but who has now headed west, has fallen in the ranking since he is now in 13th position, nearly 150 miles from Goodchild.
Only 40 miles separate the 5th, Nicolas Lunven (Holcim-PRB), from the leader, and the entry point into the Doldrums therefore promises to be crucial for the candidates for final victory. “The first six are spread over 170 miles from east to west, on an almost perfect line. Their respective offsets will inevitably generate gaps at certain times”explained Pierre Hays, deputy race director.
Before tackling the Doldrums and its capricious weather on Wednesday afternoon, the majority of the first twelve competitors benefit from ideal conditions with a wind between 18 and 20 knots on flat seas, which allows them to exceed 20 knots. of average. “The conditions are perfect to make the machine move forward. It moves on its own. So I let it express itself!“, summarized Sébastien Simon to the organizers. “Life on board is less pleasant than in recent days but the competitive mentality is pampered!”underlined Paul Meilhat (Biotherm), 12th, almost 112 miles from the lead.
The defending champion, Yannick Bestaven (Maître Coq), is still sailing around the top 10 (8th at 71 miles), ahead of Samantha Davies (Initiatives-Coeur), 9th at 91 miles, and Clarisse Crémer (L'Occitane en Provence), 10th at 95 miles.
At the back of the race, Louis Burton (Bureau Vallée), who consolidated his boat after suffering cracks in his hull, moved up the rankings (20th, 316 miles from the lead), even if his pace is far behind. of the best. Szabolcs Weöres (New Europe), dead last at 1,113 miles, has logically fallen further behind for 24 hours after having sewn up his mainsail in the shelter of the Canary Islands, which he left on Monday.
