In Sables-d'Olonne, at the end of the village of 10e Vendée Globe (open to the public), Initiatives Cœur 4 by Samantha Davies, a brand new Imoca 18 meters long and 400 m2 of sailing, sponsored by Thomas Pesquet, is waiting to set off on the seas on November 10 at 1:02 p.m.! Forty skippers (including six women) will take part in this two and a half month journey, non-stop and without assistance, or 45,000 km in theory. Deux-Sévrien André Liébot, main sponsor of Initiatives Cœur since 2014 with his industrial group, follows the race around the world.
Because Samantha is not only running to win this legendary event, but also for the “1 click-1 heart” operation, in connection with Mécénat cardiac surgery-children of the world, which makes it possible to operate on children from disadvantaged countries: “For each new follower of Initiatives Cœur on social networks – Facebook, TikTok, Instagram, YouTube – my partners donate one euro! “, s'enthusiasm Samantha Davies.
“We have already saved 394 children”
“We have already saved 394 children, including 103 during the 2020 Vendée Globe and our objective this time is to reach the milestone of 500 children. The technical cost of each operation, i.e. €12,000, is also financed by patrons. It's an incredible project. I am lucky to defend the colors of a great cause. »
On the big sail of Initiatives Cœur, the artist Titouan Lamazou, winner of the 1is Vendée Globe 1990, painted the portrait of Naylah, who had two heart operations in France, one of the miracle victims: “She’s the face of my boat!” In 2021, she came to Le Havre to dance on the bridge in front of me and Nicolas Lunven, during the Transat Jacques Vabre. She is full of energyexclaims the skipper. Jef Aérosol, a major French artist in urban art, represented other portraits of rescued children on the hull. They are my motivation. At sea, when it's hard, I look at them and I know why I'm there. »
The most Breton of English sailors
The most Breton of English sailors knows what she is talking about. Samantha Davies, 50, lives in Morbihan. His son Ruben, 13, was born in Brittany. Since 2022, with her new Imoca whose foils (carbon appendages under the hull) allow her to fly on the water at 65 km/h, she has completed six transatlantic races, and notably finished in 3e place, last May, during the Transat CIC between Lorient and New York: “You never know what will happen in the Vendée Globe. I'm going to sea with a latest generation boat, more powerful. It's a lot of work with my team, since 2022, to prepare well and train physically too. This time there are newer, faster boats, but I intend to compete in the leading group! »
André Liébot, patron of Initiatives Cœur
A dashing septuagenarian, the Deux-Sévrien André Liébot is the main sponsor of Samantha Davies' boat, with Les Chocolats du Cœur and Vinci Énergie, and patron of the Mécénat surgical cardiac association. Deux-Sèvres is his “land” of origin: “I was born in Retail, the cradle of the Beget and Liébot family. My mother, Yvonne, ran the Café du Center in Secondigny from 1948 to 1979. I like to come back to the area regularly! » the president of the Liébot group (including the K.Line brand, an aluminum window created in 1994) was immediately moved. André Liébot passed the baton to his son Jean-Pierre, in 2023, 11e generation of “blacksmith”.
Sponsorship from Initiatives Cœur is an institution within the Liébot group: “It started during the 2012 Vendée Globe, after a meeting in Paris with Tanguy de Lamothe, who helmed this boat which went from class 40 in 2009, to the Imoca class, and Dr Francine Leca (1938-2024), first female cardiac surgeon in France,” remembers André Liébot. “Financing a boat for advertising did not interest me, but becoming in 2014, the 1is contributor to Initiatives Cœur corresponded to the spirit of the company and to the 4,500 employees of the twelve companies of our European group: the adventure has already made it possible to save 394 disadvantaged children. We finance the boat, its team of nine people with Sam, and the children's surgery. This outburst of the heart makes us all happy! »
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