François Gabart has been in the lead since the 30th hour of the race, but has been slowed down by a series of incidents
François Gabart crossed the finishing line of the 11th Route du Rhum
Monday 12 November, at 04:28 am (UTC+1), François Gabart crossed the finishing line of the 11th Route du Rhum - Destination Guadeloupe in 2nd place in the Ultime class, on board the MACIF trimaran. After 7 days 14 hours, 28 minutes and 55 seconds of racing, Francis Joyon (IDEC Sport) won by 07 minutes 08 seconds, and is the new reference time holder, in 07 days, 21 minutes and 47 seconds.
Suffering from a forward sail problem that rendered it unusable, but also the loss of the starboard foil on the second night, along with the loss of the port rudder, on Tuesday, and repeated issues with the mainsail battens, the MACIF trimaran was never able to reach its full potential. This second place has a completely different taste, against IDEC Sport, a boat that has won the Route du Rhum three times, since the wins of Loïck Peyron in 2014 and Franck Cammas in 2010.
What they said:
Alain Montarant, Chairman of the Macif Group
“François Gabart has had a wonderful race and has demonstrated his talent once again. Francis Joyon’s win on IDEC Sport is to be commended. Both he and François overcame a lot of difficulties and their crossing has been breathtaking to the very last minute. The weather conditions severely tested the sailors and their equipment. The series of damage to MACIF got the better of our skipper. Macif and its 5.3 policy holders have backed him from the start and supported him all the more in this incredible relentless effort at the finish and we are proud of his 2nd place. We also praise the skipper’s team for their intensive work. They have been committed and stuck with him all through this adventure.”
Jean-Marc Raby, Managing Director of the Macif Group
“All Groupe Macif’s employees are proud of François Gabart. We followed his route all through this race and it was not kind to him due to the difficult weather conditions. Once again François proves that he is a great sailor. He succeeded in controlling the full performance potential of the MACIF trimaran, despite the considerable damage to his boat. We praise his tenacity to the very last minutes of the race. He has done Macif and proud and has demonstrated exemplary values to our policy holders.”
The 11th Route du Rhum – Destination Guadeloupe in short
3,540 theoretical miles between St Malo and Pointe-à-Pitre (Guadeloupe)
Race time of François Gabart: 7 days 14 hours, 28 minutes and 55 seconds of racing
The MACIF trimaran’s average speed: 23,46 kn
