2015 Tour de France à la Voile – Stadium racing in solid breeze

by Tour de France à la Voile on 13 Jul 2015 2015 Tour de France à la Voile – We are now one-third in the Tour and the 28 teams are preparing for another day of Stadium Racing, this time in the solid breeze. The south-westerly wind is forecast to reach 20 knots this afternoon, offering the boats a chance to sail a maximum of races. After two ‘inside races’ (VIP guest - scoring 0) at 10am and 10.30, the fleet will be divided in two groups, to compete in a serie of qualification races (minimum of two, maximum of four for each group), leading to the finals.

Overall leader Groupama will welcome skipper Franck Cammas today, in Les Sables d’Olonne and in Roses. After sailing in the Nacra 17 Worlds in Denmark, he’s stepping onboard the Diam 24 trimaran. « It’s great to have him join the crew », said helmsman Pierre Pennec. « When he came in Lanvéoc Grand Prix, we won, so even if he hasn’t sailed much on the boat, he can adapt very quickly and he is very demanding, so it makes the crew progress. He won so many regattas, inshore and offshore. When I skipper a boat I also ask the crew to excel, so this time I am the one that have to excel. Last night we were supposed to train for 20 minutes, and we trained for one hour and a half. I think he’s the one who has the pressure on, as the media expect a lot from him, but he loves that ».

Groupama is 18 points ahead of CombiWest and Grandeur Nature overall. After 10 days of racing in the Tour, all the teams have found their mark. And some are really improving. « We are in a good momentum. We finished 10th in the Coastal Race yesterday and we hope to confirm this performance today. We are looking forward to it. Kevin is resting and Quentin will be at the helm », said Emeric Dary, skipper of Dynamique Voile, currently 16th overall.