Justine Mettraux and Sam Goodchild are the first two non-French finishers in the 10th Vendée Globe
by Ed Gorman / IMOCA Globe Series 27 Jan 00:32 AEDT
25 January 2025
Justine Mettraux (TeamWork-Team SNEF) © Gauthier Lebec
Justine Mettraux of Switzerland became the first female entrant, and first skipper from outside France, to complete the 2024-'25 Vendée Globe solo round-the-world race, when she crossed the finish line on Saturday afternoon in eighth position.
Just a fraction under 25 minutes behind her in ninth place, Great Britain's Sam Goodchild became the second non-French or "international skipper" to complete the race, when he arrived at the finish off Les Sables d'Olonne.
He did so on a day that saw four other sailors finish - all of them French - led by Jérémie Beyou (Charal 2) in fourth position, followed by Paul Meilhat (Biotherm) in fifth, Nico Lunven (Holcim-PRB) sixth and Thomas Ruyant (Vulnerable), seventh.
At the helm of Teamwork-Team SNEF, the former Charal 1, Mettraux, aged 38 - who grew up cruising and racing on Lake Geneva - sailed a typically consistent and determined race and was always in or around the outer fringes of the top-10.
She completed the course in 76 days, one hour and 36 minutes, after sailing 28,101.6 nautical miles at an average speed of 15.4 knots. Her finishing time was 11 days, six hours and 14 minutes behind race winner Charlie Dalin (Macif Santé Prévoyance).
Like the others who finished on Saturday, Mettraux had to contend with tough sailing conditions in the last part of the race, when she fended off Goodchild despite tearing her mainsail as he had done before her.
"The Vendée Globe is demanding," she said. "At some point, you don't really know what you're doing anymore. But it's a great satisfaction to have managed to bring the boat back and to have done it with an amazing team."
Summing up her race, she said: "I think I really enjoyed it - the descent of the Atlantic and the Southern Ocean was incredible. I was pretty comfortable. The return, the climb up the Atlantic, wasn't that easy up until the finish line, even up until today. It was a real battle to get across the line."
Mettraux was proud to be among six female entrants in the race. Although Britain's Pip Hare (Medallia) had to divert to Australia when her boat dismasted, four remain at sea. They are led by France's Clarisse Crémer (L'Occitane en Provence) who is on course for 11th place, followed by Britain's Samantha Davies (Initiatives-Coeur), currently in 13th position.
"I think it's the first time we had so many competitive female projects in the Vendée Globe," said Mettraux. "Sam and Clarisse fought really well and I hope this (strong female presence) continues in that direction in future editions."
Goodchild on board Vulnerable the former LinkedOut, sailed an excellent race and for much of it his was the only older-generation boat in the top-six. He led the fleet for decent stretches during the early part of the descent of the Atlantic, but fell back during the long traverse of the Southern Ocean. However, once past Cape Horn, he again climbed back up the fleet and was on course for fourth or fifth place in a battle with Beyou, until his mainsail split in half a week from the finish. He managed to effect a repair, but steadily lost places in the process.
The 35-year-old skipper from Falmouth in Cornwall was still delighted to have completed the course at the first time of asking. And to have done so inside the top-10 in a race which, he says, has defined who he is as a person and the life he leads in France.
"(Coming ninth) is a bit of a shame because I was aiming for a top-five," he said at his post race press conference. "But I have to take a step back because the goal is accomplished. I have wanted to do the Vendée Globe for 20 years. My life revolves around the Vendée Globe. I came to France and my family is French," added the British skipper who is married to a French woman and has two young daughters. "I'm very happy, but that's because there's a red thread that runs through my life which is to do the Vendée Globe. I became who I am because I wanted to do the Vendée Globe. It's pretty crazy."
He summed up his gritty attitude to a race which he seemed to take very much in his stride, sailing hard and putting a lot of effort into his communications with the media and race fans along the way. "Yes, there were difficult moments. But cracking is not my style. I will never complain because it's a huge privilege to do this Vendée Globe on these boats. It's impossible for me to complain. The goal was to have fun and spend good moments at sea so, whenever I found it tough, I reminded myself that I'd been working towards this race for a long time, so I had to enjoy it," said Goodchild.
The main difficulty Goodchild encountered was dealing with decision-making on technical issues with his boat. "It was trying to figure out when to slow down or push the boat, when to stop and carry out repairs. It was a constant puzzle. For example, I hesitated about going up the mast and when to do it. You always question yourself. I found this technical decision-making difficult for three months," he said.
Mettraux, meanwhile, admitted there were times when she would have preferred sailing with her friends or a crew, but she said she had learned so much during her 76 days alone at sea.
"I don't know if I am coming back transformed, but spending so much time at sea is very enriching," she said. "I've still progressed on the boat, in strategy and in fixing things," she added laughing.
"And it's interesting, always gaining experience. That's what makes our sport so rich - experience is really decisive. I know I do this sport because I know I will always be able to continue progressing and learning every day."
Ranking:
1- Charlie Dalin (MACIF Santé Prévoyance) I 64d 19h 22m 49s
2- Yoann Richomme (Paprec Arkéa) I 65d 18h 10m 02s
3- Sébastien Simon (Groupe Dubreuil) I 67d 12h 25m 37s
4- Jérémie Beyou (Charal) I 74d 12h 56m 54s
5- Paul Meilhat (Biotherm) I 74d 22h 38m 15s
6- Nicolas Lunven (Holcim-PRB) I 75d 7h 49m 41s
7- Thomas Ruyant (Vulnerable) I 75d 16h 47m 27s
8- Justine Mettraux (TeamWork-Team SNEF) I 76d 1h 36m 52s
9- Sam Goodchild (Vulnerable) I 76d 02h 01min 45s