For the past 48 hours, Sébastien Josse, currently third in the Vendée Globe, had to put the race aside to focus exclusively on his safety and that of the Mono60 Edmond de Rothschild.
Unfortunately, the news is not good and the possible repair solutions are not sufficiently sustainable. The Nice native is withdrawing from the race.
A major damage to his port foil has indeed placed him in a delicate situation, forcing him to face extreme weather conditions with 40 knots of wind and 8-meter waves south of Australia, along the Antarctic Exclusion Zone.
On Monday morning, Sébastien Josse informed his team of major damage to the port foil of Edmond de Rothschild following a nosedive.
“On this boat, I’ve already encountered worse conditions, notably on the Transat St Barth – Port-la-Forêt where we faced up to 50 knots, but here, in the Southern Oceans, everything takes on a different dimension due to your isolation. The situation was complicated during the night from Monday to Tuesday,” lamented Sébastien Josse.
This Wednesday, the clear improvement in the situation finally allowed the skipper of the Gitana Team to conduct a true assessment of the damage sustained by Gitana 16.
The moment is difficult and the disappointment immense for the navigator.
Photo credit: Yvan Zedda / Gitana SA / Vendée Globe
