While the 40 skippers are finalizing the preparations for their boats before the departure of the Vendée Globe 2024 Sunday since Les Sables-d’Olonnewe can already imagine… the return and a possible record for the future winner of the event.
Who holds the Vendée Globe record?
A record which is the property ofArmel Le Cléac'hwinner of the 2016-2017 edition in very precisely 74 days, 3 hours, 35 minutes and 46 seconds.
We know at least one thing, the 2024 Vendée Globe will honor a very great sailor. Of Titouan Lamazou in 1990 to François Gabart in 2013, this solo, non-stop and unassisted round-the-world trip (triptych which makes this event so special) has always brought out exceptional talents.
Boats going faster and faster
All competitors line up in a single category, aboardImoca 60. IMOCA as the class founded in 1991 by the International Monohull Open Class Association. Monohulls with a length of 60 feet (18.28 m) designed to go fast, very fast.
“Very canvased, these are the most powerful monohulls on the planet sailed by a single-handed sailor”describe the organizers of the Vendée Globe on their website. “They can almost reach 40 knots downwind”they add. And as the preparation of both boats and sailors continues to progress, as do the forecasts and weather models available to them once on board, everything is in place to avoid delays en route.
Enough to swallow the oceans and why not – for the best – reach the port of Sables-d'Olonne in less than 74 days a little after mid-January 2025.
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