Tour de France à la Voile – Inexcusable error by Groupama

by Groupama sailing team on 21 Jul 2015 In the 38th Tour de France à la Voile,deprived on Sunday of its blue leader jersey in the 38th Tour de France à la Voile, Groupama 24 was very much counting on making the most of the second day of Stadium races in Gruissan to make up some points on CombiWest.

Unfortunately for Pierre Pennec and his crew, they committed an inexcusable error by sailing the wrong course in one race that they were leading with a considerable advance over their rivals. In the end, instead of closing to within two points of the leader, Groupama 24 was some five boat lengths astern and saw its direct rival, Spindrift, benefit from this `stroke of luck' to make up a little ground on them. Suffice to say that the last two stages of the Tour promise to be full-on...

On Sunday evening, after the tactical mishap in the coastal course, which cost Groupama some 19 points, the whole team got together in a venue that is as beautiful as it is wild, to put the affair behind them and get the team's objectives back on track.

On Monday morning, after a good night, the Groupama sailing team was fighting fit. Winner of the day's `inside' race (which doesn't count towards the ranking but enables the boat owners and the organiser to have one guest aboard each boat), Pierre Pennec, Quentin Ponroy and Romain Motteau got off to an excellent start in the first qualifier round. In a northerly wind oscillating between 10 and 18 knots on flat seas of an intense blue, Groupama's tactician had a ball as he skilfully exploited the variations in the wind.

Next, at the end of the second lap, instead of heading towards the finish line our three men launched into another circuit. The puzzled faces of the numerous spectators said it all, nobody imagining for one second that it was possible they were sailing the wrong course. At this level of the competition, it's a bit like Chris Froome heading for La Bastille instead of the Champs Elysées. Suffice to say it was unimaginable...

And yet... Groupama sailed towards its ruin alone, whilst its pursuers, including Made In Midi, didn't hesitate to make directly for the finish line...

Ranking outside the time and hence credited with a rather lacklustre last place, Groupama couldn't have got off to a worse start to the day: 'It's an inexcusable mistake, a schoolboy error. I feel ashamed with regards Franck, who entrusted the boat to me and to Groupama too. It's as if we got hit by a baseball bat in the back of the neck,' explains Pierre Pennec on his return to the dock.

'From that moment on, we had two solutions: give up or fight to get back into the match. Obviously the latter was the solution we went for, but we still had to manage to pull something out of the bag there'.

By racking up a third place, then a first, Groupama 24 qualified in fourth position in its group and hence logically accessed the Gold final. It was a race they won hands down once again, despite the standard of their competitors: 'It's good to end the day with a victory. Despite our mistake, we still managed to seriously limit the damage. We have a good feeling for the boat and we're quick. We just have to be a bit more rigorous and believe me we will be,' concludes Pierre Pennec, more determined than ever to prove it was the right decision to trust in him: 'We have a rest day tomorrow. Together with our coach, Maxime Paul, we're going to prepare well for the coastal course in Marseille. I love the race zone there'.

See you on Wednesday in Marseille then for two days of high-voltage racing. Franck Cammas will be sure to follow the action closely from Portsmouth, where he's preparing with Groupama Team France for the first event of the circuit in the 35th America's Cup...

Overall ranking after the first 13 days
1/ CombiWest with 618 points
2/ Groupama: - Five points
3/ Spindrift: - 13 points
4/ Grandeur Nature Vérandas: - 46 points
5/ Vannes Agglo: - 55 points