Since Jérémie Beyou's return to the start and finish harbour of Les Sables-d'Olonne last Saturday, up to 20 team members have been working day and night to make this small sensation possible: The "Charal" skipper is aiming to make another run at the ninth edition of the Vendée Globe on Tuesday, nine days behind. Leader Alex Thomson will then probably have a lead of more than 2500 nautical miles. But Beyou - buoyed by immense public support and his team - does not want to give up. As a former co-favourite alongside the leading Thomson, the 44-year-old said at his online press conference yesterday: "I'm not done with this race yet." When asked about his new goal for the race, which is extremely lonely at least for the time being, the Frenchman said honestly: "I don't know yet."
"Miracles can happen if you really try"
Beyou went on to say:
"Thanks to the hard work of my team, 'Charal' will be ready to resume the race tomorrow morning. The plan is to leave with the afternoon tide. This is great news. The team has been working around the clock to make this possible. I would like to thank them all. They had actually thought that they would finally be able to take a holiday after the start. But that never materialised. I would like to thank them, the equipment suppliers and all the people who came along. There were 10 to 15 people who pooled their talents and got the job done. The designers from VLPM, the composite people, Manu Le Borne. And a few more. I've often said that the Vendée Globe is a race that is contested by teams. And there you see it: these people have demonstrated it. Miracles can happen if you really try.
It's wonderful news that the race starts again for me tomorrow.
The main problem that forced me to turn back was the issue with the rudder. The most technically demanding repair was that of the traveller. But it was actually the assembly of the rudder and its control arm, which was broken, that challenged us because it is part of the boat's structure. We first had to examine the damage in detail and see where water had penetrated and where we had to repair. The whole thing on both sides."
Beyou has Boris Herrmann's respect
Boris Herrmann commented on the news from See's Charal racing stable: "I think that's really impressive from Jérémie. It's great that he's doing it. It must be so mentally tough. It was always absolutely clear to him that he wanted to sail for victory. Sailing behind as an adventurer is not his style at all. I don't know what motivates him now, what his motivation is and what kind of external pressure he might be under. It would be interesting to be able to look inside him. He has my admiration. It takes a lot of courage to start a Vendée Globe like this. It's exhausting in itself. But you sail with the energy that comes from the hope that you can achieve a good result. That you can deliver a good competition. If that's not a given from the outset, it's all the harder to know that you're now going to be behind for weeks."
Herrmann reminded the audience that Beyou's feat of strength had already been preceded by a pioneer: "Mike Golding is a historical role model. He had a broken mast, started ten days later, did the fastest lap and ended up in the middle of the field. That is of course an option. He did a great job back then with his British charm and coolness. And he showed that something like that also has value. That demonstrates a lot of fighting spirit. The Vendée Globe is not least a test of strength, stamina and resilience. A new start like this proves all of that. So he has my respect."
Boris Herrmann moved up to tenth place late on Monday afternoon. Jean Le Cam ("Yes We Cam"), in second place behind Alex Thomson, still has a small lead of just under 15 nautical miles on Thomas Ruyant ("LinkedOut"), who is pushing from behind.
Tatjana Pokorny
Sports reporter
