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5:43 AM Mon 16 Feb 2009 GMT
Marc Guillemot (Safran) crossed the Les Sables d'Olonne finish line at 01h 21 36s (GMT) this morning (Sunday) to clinch a hard won third place in this epic sixth edition of the Vend?e Globe solo non stop around the world race.
To complete his first Vend?e Globe the skipper has had to sail for the final 1000 miles, since he was just to the NE of the Azores, with no keel. His keel dropped out of his boat on Monday 9th February and since then the skipper from La Trinit? has had to sail prudently but still managed to wrest third from Sam Davies, GBR, (Roxy) who finished yesterday. Guillemot received a time compensation of 82 hours for diverting from his course to assist in the evacuation of injured Yann Eli?s 800 miles south of Australia in the Southern Ocean.
Accompanied by a fleet of media and spectator boats Guillemot crossed the finish line on a chilly, dark night, ending his epic race having taken a net 95 days 3 hours 19 minutes and 36 seconds to complete the course. His margin over Sam Davies, GBR, (Roxy) who gets fourth is 1h 19mins 25s.
With the lightweight VPLP/Verdier design which was tipped by many as potentially one of the quickest new boats in the fleet, it all started well for Guillemot who took the early lead in the Bay of Biscay on the first night of the race making a favourable routing to the south of the pack. While some of the fleet prepared to ride out the storm, Guillemot pushed hard in racing mode and stayed in contention. But on 14th November, having sailed into the lee of the Canaries, Marc found himself stuck in some calms fifty miles to the west of La Palma. Over a frustrating period of 24 hours, he was to give away some 200 miles to the leaders of the fleet. With such high hopes evaporating so early in the race, this was a very difficult stage for Guillemot who took time to get over this, although the skipper of Safran did start a fight back. But this park up really to cost him dearly and he crossed the the Equator on November 22nd in the company of Brian Thompson, Dee Caffari and. Sam Davies.
His race down the South Atlantic showed the shape of things to come, as Safran passed close to Gough Island where Guillemot found himself in conversation with a scientist who was staying on the island.
Neither was this his last island encounter. On 11th December, there was the first of a chapter of incidents that transformed his race from out and out competition, battling to win to a great human adventure which mixed ill fortune and fascinating and, at times, deeply stressful experiences. He hit a sea mammal on 11th December and broke his starboard daggerboard. He did not know then that his keel had also been damaged by the impact.
Then, on 16th December part of his mainsail track snapped off forcing him to sail with one or two reefs in the mainsail.
On 18th December, Guillemot's race took a new turn. He was informed by the race directors that Yann Eli?s had been injured when his boat was stopped by a big wave and that, with a fractured femur, he was unable to move aboard his Generali. In agreement with the race directors he immediately diverted. Having experienced a similar situation himself twenty years before when he had to wait with a broken pelvis for the rescue team to reach Jet Services IV, after the catamaran capsized ironically he was perhaps the best equipped mentally to know what Yann was going through,. For Marco, there was not the slightest hesitation: he headed straight for Yann and did everything possible until the Australian rescue team took off the injured sailor.
Marc spent hours circling Generali offering words of encouragement on the VHF, trying to throw sedatives and water through the companionway. Eli?s desperately needed them but his own supplies were just metres from him and he could not summon the strength to get to them. Guillemot's psychological support was vital and without any doubt a key element in Yann making a huge effort to finally reach his painkillers, some food and water.
Guillemot had to be dissuaded from jumping from his Open 60 to sail Generali towards help and refused to leave the area until he was sure that the Australian navy had the skipper of Generali safely on board. From there it was not easy to work himself back up into race mode again.
In spite of everything, Guillemot continued to fight back: he made his first pit stop off Auckland Island, a few hundred miles south of New Zealand to attempt to repair his mast, seen by two scientists carrying out research on the island. He would repeat the exercise at Port Stanley in the Falklands watched by many tourists, who were visiting on a cruise of the area. Certainly by the conclusion of his race Marc Guillemot is the sailor, who had encountered the most people during his Vend?e Globe.
To cap it all he has fought on from the loss of his keel almost a thousand miles from the finish. The weather conditions were not too unfavourable, as the last spell of heavy weather had passed. His former rival, Roland Jourdain had already shown what was possible by covering 600 miles to the Azores without his keel. He decided to continue, making it clear that he was still in the race and still aiming for a place on the podium, which he achieved tonight. Marc Guillemot (Safran) crossed the Les Sables d'Olonne finish line at 1h21min36sec GMT tonight (Sunday) to clinch a hard won third place in this epic sixth edition of the Vend?e Globe solo non stop around the world race.
Guillemot said: 'It is an incredible moment, there have been many great moments on this course, especially the time I spend close to Yann.
All these emotions, all the image, everything stops when you cross the line. I have a head which is overflowing with images and emotions, it is amazing.
'And on top of that all I am on the podium. It is incredible. The fact I had Sam beside me motivated me to go a bit faster, and I think me being with her pushed her, we pushed one another.
'Since this morning I have been counting down the time to third place. And being surrounded by the English I did not want to let them get ahead of me. I was just focussed on my course.
'I found like Bilou did that sailing without a keel is amazing. But I have a boat which is very stable. I would never have thought it possible to get back without a keel but I don't want to try it again.
'I now want to enjoy this Vend?e Globe with my friends and my family. For the for a future Vend?e Globe it is not something to decide like this.'
by Vendee Globe media
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