2024-01-18 10:09:29
By the editorial staff
Published 57 minutes ago, Updated 4 minutes ago
Tom Laperche
LOIC VENANCE / AFP
The skipper of SVR-Lazartigue experienced a huge misadventure as he progressed through the South Atlantic towards the Indian Ocean during the round-the-world race.
What about the future of Tom Laperche in the Arkea Ultim Challenge? His trimaran SVR-Lazartigue which was progressing in the South Atlantic towards the Indian Ocean this Thursday morning, experienced a major mishap. The skipper informed his technical unit of damage to the daggerboard after a collision that occurred around 5:30 a.m. French time. The 25-year-old Breton, winner of the Solitaire du Figaro and presented as the nugget of sailing, was 2nd in the ranking 1,300 miles from Cape Town at the time of the incident.
The collision damaged the drift well, causing a significant water ingress which remains stabilized. Race management announces that Tom Laperche is safe, assisted by his technical team to assess the damage and organize operations for the next few hours. In the standings this Thursday morning, Charles Caudrelier was still in the lead ahead of Laperche and Coville.
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After a great start in Brest on January 7, the SVR-Lazartigue was in the lead for a long time, in contact with the Maxi Edmond de Rothschild of navigator Charles Caudrelier, now the sole leader. The two sailboats were expected at the Cape of Good Hope on Friday to begin the grueling crossing of the Indian Ocean and the South Seas.
The organizers of the Ultim Challenge, the first solo round-the-world race between trimarans, have authorized technical stops for the six sailors entered. However, they must last a minimum of 24 hours once arrived in a port.
On Monday, Armel Le Cléac’h’s Maxi Banque Populaire XI stopped in Récife (Brazil) to repair part of its central hull. He left a day later after losing more than 1,000 miles to his competitors.
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