« There are three types of people on earth: the living, the dead and those who go to sea. » The poster for the film retracing Thomas Ruyant's last Vendée Globe, in 2020-21, quite clearly set out the terms of the project in which the 40 skippers present at the start are preparing to participate. 24,300 miles (45,000 km) to cover, three legendary capes to cross (Good Hope, Leeuwin, Horn), the Bay of Biscay, the trade winds, the Doldrums, the Saint Helena anticyclone to circumvent , the South Seas, the cetacean areas to avoid, the rise of the Atlantic, the Azores… A program as beautiful as it is frightening, a plunged into an adventure full of unexpected events that will forever transform all those who embrace it.
The one who makes the fewest mistakes will win.”
We will find regulars there, including Jean Le Cam, 65 years old and a 6e participation; the rookies, including Violette Dorange, 23 years old and the youngest in the fleet; and the favorites, which number three or 7-8 depending on the position of the cursor. Among them, Thomas Ruyant, third participation after abandoning in 2017 and a frustrating sixth place in 2021. Serene and determined, the Northerner does not take the start to greet the albatrosses in the great South.
“He who makes the fewest mistakes”
Saturday morning, at the Sables-d'Olonne convention center, in a friendly and relaxed exchange with the 900 supporters who accompanied him, the Dunkirk announced that he was leaving with 78 days of food, i.e. an arrival no later than January 27, 2025. He should have a little remaining, the record of 74 days and 3 hours held by Armel Le Cléac'h since 2017 should logically be beaten by skippers and machines which have progressed enormously in eight years. “ The one who makes the fewest mistakes will win. », told us Michel Desjoyeaux, double winner, a few weeks ago, as a prediction.
