She is the schools' favorite navigator. Aboard her new Imoca Initiatives Cœur, Samantha Davies will set off in her fourth Vendée Globe with the same mission: to save children by raising funds for the Mécénat Chirurgie Cardiaque association. After a promising third place on The Transat before the summer, the British sailor also hopes to shine for what could be her last solo round the world trip.
At 50, the woman who lives in Lorient and is the mother of a 13-year-old boy, presents herself among the outsiders behind the favorites Charlie Dalin, Yoann Richomme, Jérémie Beyou and Thomas Ruyant. After a superb 4th place in 2008 on Roxy, Sam Davies had to retire in 2012 before being disqualified in 2020 for having stopped on land. In 2024, it is with a vengeful spirit and a brand new boat specially designed for her that the Englishwoman will set off. To hear him say it, it could be the last.
Samantha, will this Vendée Globe really be your last?
This will be my fourth start. It’s true that I would like it to be the last one. Because you don't have to do that all your life either. These boats are violent. I would love to be able to walk when I'm 60! This race is not the kindest thing for the human body. Currently, I feel good. But I tell myself that if I keep doing it, maybe I'll get bored. I tell myself that I would like to have a great Vendée Globe and move on to something else.
Has your decision already been made?
No. When you prepare for the Vendée Globe, it's hard to think about the future. It's a big trap to think too much about what's next because often it's the Vendée Globe that decides what you do next. It's so hard that if you start too early, you'll burn out. I don't think too much about it. I would really like to be able to save lots of children with Initiatives Cœur. I don't have time to spend thinking about what's next.
Is the desire to sail still there?
Of course ! At the start of my career, I always said: I love sailing so much that I never want to get up in the morning and tell myself I have to go. Today, I am 50 years old and there is not a day when I do not want to go. I want it to stay! I'm not sure I still want to do a Vendée Globe after this one but I'm not going to stop sailing either. There are other races, crewed for example. I love the Imoca class so I would like to continue sailing there, but perhaps leave my place on the Vendée to someone else. But it's hard to think that.
Especially since you are sailing for the first time on your boat, an Imoca designed for you…
Yes, it's the first time. When I started, I felt very attached to my first boat (PRB, now Roxy, the only boat to have won the Vendée Globe twice in 2000 and 2004). I had the impression that it was the boat that was taking me because it had already been on two. Limit when I didn't know what to do, I let him do it, I knew he had experienced everything. Today, it's the opposite, it's me who must take my boat around the world, guide it. It’s a different career stage. I'm going to teach him things.
Have you particularly sought to improve (a little) comfort on board?
It was super important for me to optimize life on board. As we go faster, comfort is reduced, so we have arranged the interior to be able to withstand the violence of speed. We have developed a new chair for piloting, which allows you to be on a shock absorber. It's not luxury but we are safe. I broke two ribs in the last Vendée Globe when I was thrown into my boat.
This one is even more powerful, more modern. It is stronger but it is also stiffer. It goes very well in the sea with very long and powerful foils. This makes it speed up but it also puts loads. Since then, I have worn a helmet, several even, which are different, and I really pay attention to my movements so as not to hurt myself.
How do we prepare physically to go at sea for so long?
In the boat, it hits so hard that I'm constantly tense, so much so that sometimes I have trouble swallowing food. We are so covered with deep muscles that we constantly tighten to hold on and not fall. Holding it like that for ten days is fine, but for two and a half or three months, it's impossible. To prepare, I do a lot of weight training and stretching. I often do swimming pool sessions, sometimes a little cycling, pilates sessions. I like being outside so I'm learning to wingsurf. I surf too, even though I'm not very strong. These make for great physical preparation sessions! When it's calm, I go on long hikes with friends on the weekend. It's my pleasure sport. It's part of my mental preparation.
You have a 13-year-old boy who will be alone for three months. How will he live while you're gone?
He's going to go to school, do his homework. Friends take care of him. His dad also sails (Romain Attanasio, who will also be at the start of the race). It's a friend who comes to stay with me. She's a bit like his nanny! Well, maybe that's not the right word because he's 13 now. But at each Vendée Globe, he had a very sociable life because everyone came to see him or welcomed him. Friends, family… He’s always invited to friends’ houses! And fortunately. Because it's really hard to think about your child when you're racing. My other child is my boat. If I want to perform, I have to be able to leave calmly, knowing that he will be well taken care of, without us, despite everything that may happen to him.
Is it hard to leave it when you leave?
If I say no, people will think I'm a horrible mother (laughs). But I would say no, because I try to organize everything so that the moment of departure is not difficult. Otherwise, I wouldn't leave, I wouldn't feel good in my head. Afterwards, when it's time to say goodbye, we're sure we're sad when we know we're leaving for two and a half months. We choose to say goodbye first, between us. The starting atmosphere of the Vendée Globe is a somewhat heavy emotional context. It's a bit lame to be there on the pontoon on departure day. During the last Vendée, we didn't want to experience that so we said goodbye three days before and he watched the start on TV. It's part of mental preparation, it's essential to anticipate it.
