Yann Eliès qualifies for the Vendée Globe

by Edited by Mer & Media. Source: Yann Eliès's press on 10 Jun 2016 It’s official: Yann Eliès has completed his qualification for the Vendée Globe. He received the confirmation, while still at sea, sailing near the Azores. The skipper of Quéguiner-Leucémie Espoir has covered more than 1500 miles sailing solo during the New York Vendée Race, where he is currently ranked in tenth place.

That’s one more thing out of the way. That’s how Yann Eliès felt today. Now, Yann has fulfilled all the formalities to register and qualify for the Vendée Globe. He is in fact the 22nd on the list of 27 registered to be in that situation. 'This is a key moment for me, for the Quéguiner Group and for the whole team. We’ve been working towards lining up for the start of the Vendée Globe for two years, and personally, it’s something I have been waiting for since 2008. So it feels great getting my entrance ticket sorted out. It’s a small victory, one more step towards our goal.”

“One more step towards the goal”

We should remember that Yann Eliès did not compete in the 2012-2013 Vendée Globe. He was however, one of the unlucky heroes in the 2008/2009 race. Seriously injured 800 miles south of the coast of Australia in 2008, Yann was rescued firstly by Marc Guillemot on his Safran… a boat that is none other than the current Quéguiner Leucémie Espoir that Yann is sailing near the Azores in the New York-Vendée Race.

It is true that Yann Eliès would have liked to have been one of those contending for victory in this race between the Big Apple and Les Sables d'Olonne. Like many of his rivals, being forced to carry out a pit stop in Newport put an end to that hope. Having said that, the main goal in taking part was to complete his qualification for the Vendée Globe, which he has now achieved. On top of that, an informal race between three boats has been underway since then, between Quéguiner-Leucémie espoir, Jean-Pierre Dick’s St Michel-Virbac and Morgan Lagravière’s new Safran. 1300 miles from the finish, it is very close between these three, which would indicate that Yann Eliès’s boat stands up well against the new foilers, as his IMOCA is a traditional IMOCA with straight daggerboards. Sailing at between 17 and 18 knots off the Azores, it is in fact these three boats that are the fastest in the fleet this Tuesday afternoon. Thanks to a strong NW’ly wind, they are able to make straight for Les Sables d'Olonne for the moment.

Yann Eliès will leave the Azores in his wake this evening. He believes he has around twenty hours of rough conditions to deal with before the wind drops off, as he approaches Spain. “As we get close to Cape Finisterre, sometime on Thursday, it is going to be very light, a bit like the conditions currently being experienced by our friends up at the front. The final miles are not going to be easy, but it’s going to be interesting to see who does best in our group of three.” All the more so, as these three will be ones to watch from the start of the next Vendée Globe…