The last night is behind them for the two race leaders. As the sun rises, the relief will be great, especially for Alex Thomson, who has probably been on the edge of his strength for days without a functioning AIS and with a faulty autopilot, as team manager Stewart Hosford also confirmed yesterday during the organiser's live broadcast.
At 9 o'clock this morning, the Frenchman still had 98 miles to go to the finish line, which is around seven to eight hours at a current speed of around 12 knots. In Les Sables d'Olonne, a huge sea of fans is preparing for the arrival of the winners, with even more people expected than the 350,000 or so who came to the start.
But fans at home can also watch live as "Banque Populaire VIII" crosses the finish line. The broadcast on the Vendée Globe's web TV channel will begin around 30 minutes before the finish and will then accompany the skipper into the harbour of Les Sables d'Olonne, which he should reach around 20 minutes after crossing the finish line. As usual, there will be a French commentary and an English one, viewers will have to access the corresponding version of the Vendée homepage (to the English version here ).
The finish will also be shown via the organiser's app or via YouTube or Dailymotion account and facebook. The coverage will last around two hours, including the press conference. The race tracker will be continuously updated as soon as the first boat crosses the 100 nautical mile distance, rather than every three hours as before.
Andreas Fritsch
Editor Travel
