Paul Meilhat's Team Biotherm has published a wonderful preview of Ocean Race stage six. The French team describe the challenges ahead after their difficult fifth leg with a great deal of respect, but also charged with anticipation and a desire to attack. Despite countless technical problems and setbacks, their youngest boat in the fleet is considered to be made for the smooth and possibly less windy European final waters.
Team Biotherm is currently in fourth place in the overall Ocean Race standings. It will be difficult to work their way up to the podium. Nevertheless, Team Biotherm is dedicating a declaration of love to the upcoming sixth leg, which is full of sailing lust:
Condensed, coastal, diverse
800 miles. It's the shortest route of the Ocean Race, but certainly not the shortest."small stage". As in the fairy tales of Hans Christian Andersen*, the Danish writer born on the island of Funen, which has to be rounded by the fleet, the Ocean Race heroes have many obstacles to overcome if they want to have a chance of a happy ending in The Hague (Holland), the final destination of this sixth and penultimate work.
On the water, this three-day sprint along the coast will be fast-paced and will involve a number of sleepless nights. A format that suits the Biotherm crew very well, as they only have one goal: victory. The race starts tomorrow, Thursday, at 6.15 pm.
"It's going to be a real race. A real hurdle race"explains Anthony Marchand, who alongside Paul Meilhat, Alan Roberts, Mariana Lobato and Anne Beaugé (Editor: On-board reporter) is back on board the blue boat. It is a stage for Figaro sailors"Antho continues,"and that's a good thing, because we've already collected 24 solitaires between us!"
How will this penultimate stage go?
A first ultra-coastal section takes the fleet along the meandering Kattegat. There, the Imocas have to make their way between the Danish islands in order to reach the first mark off the German city of Kiel. From there, they must escape this maritime labyrinth and head for the North Sea, where they will dive along the Dutch coast between sandbanks and shipping lanes.
"A lot will happen. Lots of positioning against our competitors, tactical and strategic issues, sail changes, stacking and manoeuvring. It will be important not to fall asleep before the charting! It will be a neck-and-neck race and we will have to fight for every metre. In short, we won't get much sleep." The short rest breaks will be all the more hypothetical as the start of the race will be characterised by a light breeze.
"Full throttle"
Spurred on by their success at the In-Port Race in Aarhus, the Biotherm team wants to give it their all, despite the considerable fatigue that has accumulated in the almost six months of the race and the late finish in Denmark."We want to treat ourselves to something special and fight hard for ourselves, the sailors, the shore crew and the sponsor. We are still in a good mood and everyone is working flat out"warns Antho.
With the return of Guyot Environnement, five Imoca participants will once again be on the starting line. The front runners are expected to arrive in The Hague on 11 June, where The Ocean Race will enter the harbour for the third time in its history. The stopover in this European and international stronghold, which hosts numerous sailing competitions, will be short-lived, as the curtain will rise on the final act on 15 June.
* Hans-Christian Andersen is the author of over 150 world-famous stories, including "The Little Mermaid", "The Snow Queen", "The Match Girl" and "The Ugly Duckling".
With plenty of team experience and a new star in stage six
Against the concentrated Figaro power on "Biotherm" and other boats, Boris Herrmann's Team Malizia wants to utilise its intensive experience as a group in the battle for the best possible podium place. Co-skipper Will Harris said: "We see the collective crew experience in our team as an advantage compared to the many Figaro sailors on other boats."
The front-runners from the US team 11th Hour Racing will be showing up at the start line in Aarhus with a new star: Ocean Race winner, America's Cup sailor and "Gitana" skipper Franck Cammas comes on board as a heavyweight and driver. "Franck will bring a new intensity as we approach the end of the race," commented Enright on the prominent new addition.
Multihull maestro Franck Cammas in the game
Enright continued: "Franck brings a lot of Imoca experience. He's a former winner of the Ocean Race and this is an 800 nautical mile, three-day leg, a sort of Solitaire du Figaro, and he won it! He trained with us before the race, so he knows the crew and the boat well. We're looking forward to having him on the team."
Cammas is one of France's most successful sailors, having won the Ocean Race in 2012 as the "Groupama" skipper and is a six-time Orma World Champion. Named Sailor of the Decade in 2020, the multihull expert has won every race he has taken part in since 2019 with Groupe Edmond de Rothschild Ultime. Franck Cammas is currently co-skipper alongside Jérémie Beyou on the Imoca "Charal 2".
Without a crew, we can't drive the Imocas one hundred per cent" "Franck Cammas"
"The Ocean Race has been close to my heart since we won with 'Groupama' in 2012. I've been following this edition of the race since the beginning and have been impressed by the fighting spirit of the 11th Hour Racing team on their new Imoca. I trained with them in Lisbon in 2021 and am looking forward to getting back on board and learning more about fully crewed Imocas. Being able to propel these boats 100% is something we can't do without crew. I'm impressed by the speed and power of the boats."
It's all to play for: the last two stages are coming up! Here is the preview:
Tatjana Pokorny
Sports reporter
