West of the Cape Verde Islands, Alexia Barrier continues her journey despite the intense back pain that constantly hinders her. But there’s no question of giving up so close to the goal!
The journey to the finish line is going to be long. So close to the goal, the Maralpine is experiencing one of the most complicated situations. Injured in the back, every movement now requires a real effort: “The pain is still there. We don’t yet know if it’s muscular or if something is broken; we need to wait a little longer to see if the pain decreases over the days,” explains the skipper of TSE-4myplanet, who is receiving advice and diagnosis from the onshore race doctor. “Alexia is likely injured at the transverse band (the area where the muscles are attached to the spine)”, notes Jean Yves Chauve, who has been serving in the Vendรฉe Globe since its first edition.
A diagnosis that isn’t necessarily reassuring given the symptoms described by the sailor: “On the boat, it’s not easy because I have trouble walking. Fortunately, the weather was calm these past few days, so I didn’t have maneuvers to perform. For now, I can’t turn the winch handles. Yesterday, I managed to unfurl the J2 by bearing off with 15 knots of wind, going very slowly, and when I move on the deck, I’ve switched to crawling on all fours. So I’m going very slowly and anticipating everything to the max.”
Last night, it was observed that the pink and black IMOCA had initiated a maneuver to head more towards the East and move closer to the Canary Islands. Good news that proves the great determination driving Alexia about ten days from the finish!
