Transat Café L'Or: Frankie's announcement - top start in Vendée Globe campaign

Francesca Clapcich and Will Harris' gala at the Transat Café L'Or lasted 12 days, 1 hour, 32 minutes and 46 seconds. By then, the Italian-American and the Brit had conquered second place. Only Jérémie Beyou's "Charal" was better. Frankie Clapcich has heralded the second life of "11th Hour Racing" in striking style with this first two-handed transit on Boris Herrmann's ex-"Malizia - Seaexplorer". The 2023 Ocean Race winner has brilliantly mastered step one of her first Vendée Globe campaign alongside her British co-skipper.

Second in the Transat Café L'Or - like Ellen MacArthur once did

In the classic race from Le Havre in France to Fort-de-France on Martinique, Francesca Clapcich, who was born in Trieste but has since naturalised in the USA and lives with her family in Park City, Utah, was the first American participant. She and Will Harris also achieved the best Transat result for a female skipper in the Imoca class since Dame Ellen MacArthur, who also came second in 2005. The Transat silver also marks the best Imoca result for a non-French team in 14 years.

Francesca Clapcich bowed to her famous predecessor at the finish harbour in Fort-de-France, saying: "I grew up with Ellen as my heroine. That my name is now a little closer to hers is an honour I would never have dreamed of. She has shown the world what is possible not just for women in this sport, but for all sailors. I never really sail to break records or be the first to do something, but when it happens, it's pretty cool. I hope this opens the doors for other people to try the same thing."

Francesca Clapcich, whose 11th Hour Racing campaign is also supported by Boris Herrmann's Malizia team, dedicated the success to the team: "It's a result for the whole team. There were only two of us on board, but we couldn't have done it without the support of our entire team." Why the 37-year-old athletic sailing all-rounder with an Olympic background and big goals in the Imoca class chose "Malizia - Seaexplorer" as the first boat in her new campaign and had just taken over after the Ocean Race Europe, she explained in an exclusive interview with YACHT back in the summer.

Frankie opens Vendée Globe campaign promisingly

Her look back at her first Imoca two-handed race as skipper was interesting after her success in the Transat Café L'Or. Francesca Clapcich reported on a lot of "manual labour" on board: "The last twelve days were incredibly intense. We spent a lot of time steering by hand and slept very little. That's the cool thing about it: constantly pushing and being pushed and having to fight back. It's a pretty cool way to sail."

Clapcich and Harris were in third position for a long time in the Transat Café L'Or, chasing the confidently leading "Charal" with Jérémie Beyou and Morgan Lagravière and also the Vendée Globe winner "Macif Santé Prévoyance" with Sam Goodchild and Loïs Berrehar ahead of them. While Clapcich and Harris were unable to match the confidently sailed "Charal", they did manage to catch the French pre-start favourites ahead of them.

Clapcich and Harris were consistently in the top four and led the 18-boat fleet on their way to the Canary Islands. After leaving the archipelago on their right, turning west and reaching the trade winds, they lost the lead but fought hard to keep up with "Charal" and the eventual third place finishers on "Macif Santé Prévoyance". They moved up to second place with 400 nautical miles to go.

Strategy at Transat Café L'Or: "our own thing"

The Clapcich/Harris duo completed 5,503.49 nautical miles at an average speed of 19.01 knots. Boris Herrmann's long-term co-skipper Will Harris commented: "We started the race with the aim of being among the best. In the end we came second - that's definitely among the best! We also went into this transatlantic race with the aim of sailing our own race, doing our own thing and following our own strategy."

According to Harris, this was very demanding at times. The Brit noted: "It was very tough in the English Channel, but we were very happy with how we dealt with the conditions." The Transat Café L'Or marked the third race together for Francesca Clapcich and Will Harris, who previously sailed in the Course des Caps and the Ocean Race Europe in a boat that was still sailing under the Malizia team umbrella at the time before being taken over by Team 11th Hour Racing.

Francesca Clapcich had nothing but good things to say about her co-skipper Will Harris: "Will is one of the best and most complete sailors I have ever sailed with - from the performance of the boat to the navigation and strategy. A lot of the good decisions we made on the race course were down to the work and preparation Will put in before the start. It was a great experience sailing with him."

Clapcich and Harris: strong together

Will Harris, for his part, also enjoyed sailing in a duo with Francesca Clapcich and said: "It was a pleasure to sail the whole regatta with Frankie. This is one of my top three results ever! We always pushed the boat to its limits and worked as hard as we could - but with a smile on our faces. And as an Italian, she always made sure we had good coffee on board! She has great potential for the future of her Vendée Globe project and I'm happy to have been a part of it."

Francesca Clapcich's partners on the Vendée Globe course were also delighted. Jeremy Pochman, CEO and co-founder of title sponsor 11th Hour Racing, said: "For Francesca to achieve a podium finish in her first race as an Imoca skipper speaks volumes about her focus, resilience and leadership on the water. The performance she and Will showed during this transatlantic race reflects the team spirit and determination that characterises 11th Hour Racing."

We have always believed in Francesca and the incredible potential she brings to this team. This result is impressive proof that this belief has been realised." Jeremy Pochman

Francesca Clapcich will take part in the Imoca Globe Series over the next three years until the Vendée Globe 2028/2029, competing in solo, short-handed and team races to collect points towards qualifying for the legendary solo around the world. As soon as Boris Herrmann's new Imoca takes to the water in summer 2026, the previous owner of her boat will also be among her opponents on the water.

Transat Café L'Or: High voltage in the Class40

While the Ultim, Ocean Fifty and Imoca champions are already celebrating their achievements in the Transat Café L'Or in Fort-de-France on Guadeloupe, other Imocas and, above all, the entire Class40 are still at sea. In stormy conditions, the forties had made a stopover in La Curuña, which was scheduled by the race organisers. The leading boats still had around 1800 nautical miles to go to the finish on the morning of 8 November. The north-south division of the fleet continues to create tension.

The top eight boats are still sailing in the north. Only the "Seafrigo - Sogestran", sailing in ninth place with class heavyweights Guillaume Pirouelle and Cédric Chateau, is the leading boat in the southern group. However, Pirouelle/Chateau were initially 380 nautical miles behind the northern leaders Corentin Douguet and Axel Tréhin on "SNSAM - Faites un don" on Saturday morning.

A special women's duel in the midfield of the Class40 is causing a lot of excitement: Sasha Lanièce and Sanni Beucke, who is sailing with an orthosis, finished in 21st place on "Alderan", one place ahead of Aina Bauza Roig and Team Malizia's former co-sailor Axelle Pillain on "Engie". This duel is also interesting because the "Engie" co-skippers had won the Cap pour Elles competition and were able to prepare for the Transat Café L'Or with the support of the organisers.

Sasha Lanièce and Sanni Beucke fight

Sasha Lanièce and Sanni Beucke had also applied. The Frenchwoman and the German then went through their programme without the Cap pour Elles tailwind, supported by Alderan and showing a strong fighting performance so far after Sanni Beucke tore a posterior cruciate ligament on the La Coruña course. Click here to track the Transat Café L'Or.