Team Engie race towards their goal in final stage of GC32 Racing Tour

by Sébastien Rogues on 10 Oct 2017 In just two days, the Marseille One Design event, the final stage of the GC32 Racing Tour 2017, will see the teams challenging each other for the last time this season in this high-level championship.

Among the boats competing, Team Engie will attempt to achieve their season’s objective of a podium finish. Sébastien Rogues and his crew will have to deal with ever sharper competition but Team Engie’s men will no doubt give it their all to ensure a winning performance for this last event. The waters of Marseille will be the ideal setting for racing foiling catamarans, where the event will run from Thursday 12th to Sunday 15th October, promising four days of thrilling competition.

Calm and impatient, these were Sébastien’s words before his departure for Marseille, where the last event of the season in the GC32 catamaran will be played out, and moreover where Team Engie’s GC32 will make its last appearance. After three years on this demanding, ultra-competitive and intense circuit, the skipper from La Baule and Engie have chosen not to continue on the GC32 circuit.

“We cannot wait and the waters of Marseille will be a wonderful setting for our last races on the GC32. There will also be a touch of nostalgia, as for the past three years we have been living an incredible adventure on this extraordinary boat. We are very focused and we especially want to sail our best race yet to get onto the podium. This will require a perfect race. It is back in Marseille that everything began in 2014 and it is here that the story in our GC32 will end. We are coming to the end of a very beautiful adventure. For Marseille, we are going to install an electronics pack with our partner SAP, which will allow us to collect even more data and gain further understanding of the practice of foiling.

We have a small change on board because unfortunately Benjamin Amiot has been injured and we are lucky to welcome on board a young sailor from the Team France Youth selection, Jean Baptiste Ducamin. Giving youth a chance makes sense to us and we are delighted to take him on board for this extreme adventure. He will take Benjamin’s place as foil trimmer and bowman. This decision taken with the coach Bertrand Dumortier is important, especially since Bertrand coached Jean-Baptiste in previous selections. I am convinced that his youth and his enthusiasm combined with his professionalism will be a plus for us out on the water,” confided Sébastien.

Sébastien Rogues, Gurvan Bontemps, Jean Baptiste Gellée and Antoine Joubert will make up the crew with the young recruit Jean-Baptiste Ducamin for this last event, which the young sailor from Arcachon Bay is highly enthusiastic about. “I am very honoured to be able to sail with Team Engie in Marseille. I was fortunate to take part in the Team France Youth selections and to be selected in the last eight. We were able to sail the AC45 in Bermuda, but being here in the midst of these professional crews is a real bonus. There is a great cohesion between the team members and I think it is fantastic. I cannot wait to be there.'

Accustomed to excellent performances and high standards from teams so far on the circuit, Team Engie will have to redouble their efforts to maintain the good results and make sure they finish as many races as possible in the best position. It is a fairly simple equation, but vital in order to climb to third place on the podium. Currently fourth, Team Engie is three points behind Mamma Aiuto! and has three advantage points over the Malizia crew from Monaco. Every single point will be decisive for the final ranking and the team will give it their all for this last round.

Overall ranking GC32 Racing Tour 2017
1 - Realteam – Switzerland – 7 points
2 - Argo – USA – 9 points
3 - Mamma Aiuto! – Japan – 15 points
4 - Team Engie – France – 18 points
5 - Malizia – Monaco Yacht Club – Monaco – 21 points
6 – Movistar - Spain – 25 points
7 - Armin Strom Sailing Team – Switzerland – 29 points
8 – Zoulou – France – 35 points
9 - .film Racing – Australia – 36 points
10 - Codigo Rojo – Argentina – 40 points