Lorient Prepares for Offshore Sailing World Championship – Part 2
by 2024 Offshore Double Handed World Championship 23 Sep 04:05 PDT
24 September – 1 October 2024
World Sailing Offshore Double Handed World Championship: Lorient La Base © ODHWC 2024
The event is organized by Lorient Grand Large in collaboration with FFVoile, the Yacht Club De France, and the Royal Ocean Racing Club, with support from Cap-Regatta and Multiplast/Jeanneau.
With less than two days to go until the Offshore Double Handed World Championship (ODHWC) kicks off, teams from across the globe have congregated in Lorient, France. Mixed pairs of sailors from 16 different nations are set to compete in One Design Sun Fast 30s. The racecourse, starting from Lorient, traverses the rugged Atlantic Coast, which can create challenging conditions under the best circumstances. Racing in One Design Sun Fast 30s, the area will stretch westward to the Isles of Scilly and eastward to the western reaches of The English Channel.
Teams have been assigned by World Sailing, with two preliminary races determining the ten teams advancing to the World Championship Final. The first overnight eliminatory race is scheduled for Wednesday, 25 September, with the second elimination following on Thursday, 26 September. The top five boats from each elimination will qualify for the Final Race, set to start on Sunday, 29 September.
Région Bretagne Race – Elimination Race Two
Start: Lorient at 1600 CET, Thursday, 26 September.
Elimination Race Two, the Région Bretagne Race, is forecasted to start with light variable winds that will build from the west or southwest. The approximately 12-hour race will feature 11 entrants from Australia, Belgium, France, Germany, Great Britain, Netherlands, New Zealand, Spain, Sweden, Turkey, and the United States.
Australia – Scotty & Phillippa Cavanough
This husband-and-wife duo hails from the Gold Coast of Australia and has extensive offshore experience in Class40 and Mini Transat events. Both have participated in the Global Ocean Race on separate boats. Phillippa has sailed the TJV Double handed and accrued thousands of offshore miles. She works for a major commercial rope company supplying ships. Scotty is a professional rigger focused on racing and superyachts globally.
France 1 – Elodie Bonafous & Basile Bourgnon
France 1 is considered a strong contender for the World Championship. Elodie Bonafous, a former J/80 World Champion, has taken part in five Solitaire du Figaros, finishing 8th in the 2024 edition. She holds the distinction of being the first French woman to podium in a stage of the Solitaire du Figaro and has her sights set on the Vendée Globe 2028. Basile Bourgnon is a promising young sailor at just 21. He has progressed through the Mini Transat ranks and achieved 7th place in the 2024 Solitaire du Figaro. Basile is currently ranked 2nd in the French Elite Offshore Racing Championship.
Belgium 1 – Timothé Deplasse & Alix Schouller
Timothé Deplasse, a native of Lorient, serves as a preparer for the IMOCA APICIL, helmed by Damien Sequin. Co-skipper Alix Schouller and Timothé have recently returned from the Tour Voile and both compete in the Figaro 3 Class.
Spain – Aina Bauzá & David Paul
Aina, from Mallorca, has raced in the Figaro and Mini Transat. This year, she achieved a new solo transatlantic record in a monohull, sailing from Cádiz to the Bahamas in 30 days, 22 hours, and 34 minutes. David is a young offshore sailor from London, currently participating in the French Elite Offshore Championship and hopes to race in the Figaro.
Great Britain 2 – Peter Bacon & Louise Clayton
This Corinthian team has thousands of miles of short-handed racing experience. Peter has crossed the Atlantic twice, including a double-handed journey with his son in the RORC Transatlantic Race. Louise has participated in four Fastnet campaigns and one Transatlantic race. In 2021, Louise began double-handed racing on Stuart Greenfield’s classic S&S 34 Morning After, winning the Cowes-St Malo double-handed fleet and completing the 1800-mile Round Britain and Ireland Race with a crew of four.
Germany – Lina Rixgens & Sverre Reinke
Lina Rixgens is a young physician in Hamburg and is part of the city’s long-standing youth sailing organization HSV. She has competed in two editions of the Mini Transat, and her co-skipper, Sverre Reinke, has also joined her in two-handed races. They plan to purchase a Sun Fast 30, based in Kiel, to compete in European offshore events.
Netherlands 1 – Yvonne Beusker & Erik Van Vuuren
Yvonne and Erik first teamed up for the 2012 Global Ocean Race and have since logged thousands of miles together. Yvonne skippered J/105 Panther in the 2015 Rolex Fastnet Race, double-handed with Edith Voskamp, marking the first all-female team to finish the race. Erik has secured numerous national titles in the Netherlands and captained the 2014 Atlantic Kite Challenge, the first non-stop ocean crossing by kite.
Sweden – Anna Drougge & Martin Angsell
Anna Drougge is a seasoned Swedish sailor, having raced in the 2001 Volvo Ocean Race with Amer Sports 2, an all-female crew led by Lisa McDonald. Martin Angsell has won several Swedish championships and international medals in various sailing disciplines, ranging from match racing to shorthanded offshore racing. Together, they have participated in many events, including the ORC Double Handed Offshore Championship.
Turkey – Onur Tok & Pelin Keskin
Onur and Pelin raced against each other in Optimists as children before Pelin transitioned to rowing. Onur continued competitive sailing, participating in the International Dragon Class and J/70 One Design. During the COVID-19 lockdown, they began planning to race together double-handed and have been competing with Beymetal Team LR for about three years.
USA 2 – Erica Lush & Tim Kent
Erica Lush has sailed since childhood and raced extensively in the 12 Metre Class as an adult. On boats like Maiden and various Maxis, she has accumulated over 85,000 nautical miles offshore, including crossing the Southern Ocean via the three Great Capes, becoming part of the first all-female crew to win a round-the-world yacht race. Erica began double-handed racing in 2020 to improve her overall skills and challenge herself, quickly becoming passionate about it. Tim Kent started solo racing in 1997 amidst the inaugural Chicago-to-Mackinac solo race, winning the 1999 edition. He competed in the solo Around Alone Race in 2002 with an IMOCA 50, finishing second in Class 2. Tim is committed to increasing female participation in this sport at a high level.
Stay updated on all the happenings in the Offshore Double Handed World Championship with LIVE TRACKING. For more information, visit www.lorientgrandlarge.org
