Vendée Globe. Côtes-d’Armor skipper Guirec Soudée under his boat in 5 degree seas

New test for the skipper of Plougrescant (Côtes-d’Armor) Guirec Soudée.

While he had enjoyed a nice rise in the Vendée Globe rankings for his birthday, he returned to recurring sail problems.

Experienced at the beginning of December when his boat sank as he had to struggle with his loose rigging, this time he found himself with his sail in the water.

This morning, at 8:30 a.m. UT, the halyard of code 0 (large headsail) of the Imoca Freelance.com broke. The 200 m2 sail ended up in the water, becoming dangerously tangled in the keel.

He dives into the freezing waters of Cape Horn

Guirec Soudée had no choice but to dive under his boat, in water at 5 degreesto disengage the sail from its keel. A particularly delicate and high-risk operation in the cold waters of the South Atlantic and while the boat was out of control and drifted towards the coast.

“I’m out of juice”

The skipper Freelance.com admitted to being exhausted. “I’m out of juice,” he told his team.

He actually came out of the water and after a grueling operation, managed to bring his sail back on board!

For him, this mission was essential: “It would make me sick to leave anything in the ocean.”

Guirec Soudée lost 3 places in the ranking. This Wednesday, January 8, 2025, he is 25th.

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