France Takes the Lead in the Offshore Sailing World Championship
by 2024 Offshore Double Handed World Championship 26 Sep 04:09 PDT
24 September – 1 October 2024
Charlotte Yven and Lois Berrehar (FRA) – Offshore Sailing World Championship Day 1 © Anne Beaugé /LGL
With wind speeds exceeding 30 knots, the opening elimination race of the Offshore Double Handed World Championship featured a fierce contest in challenging conditions.
Eleven teams participated in the Département du Morbihan Race – Elimination Race One, which was triumphantly claimed by Charlotte Yven & Lois Berrehar (FRA). The top five teams will secure a spot in the Offshore Double Handed World Championship Final scheduled for 29 September.
Qualifiers for the ODHWC Final:
France 2: Charlotte Yven & Lois Berrehar
Uruguay: Federico Waksman & Justina Pacheco
Belgium 1: Jonas Gerckens & Djemila Tassin
Great Britain 1: Maggie Adamson & Cal Finlayson
Canada: Benjamin Daniel & Sarah Nicholson
Charlotte Yven & Lois Berrehar (FRA) completed the approximately 82NM race in an elapsed time of 10 hours, 40 minutes, and 45 seconds, finishing over 40 minutes ahead of Federico Waksman & Justina Pacheco (URU).
Just six minutes later, Jonas Gerckens & Djemila Tassin (BEL) crossed the finish line for third. Maggie Adamson & Cal Finlayson (GBR) secured fourth place. A thrilling contest for the fifth position, the coveted ‘hot seat’ for the Offshore Double Handed World Championship Final, went to Benjamin Daniel & Sarah Nicholson (CAN). Barbara Karpinska & Kevin Morgan (USA) and Gerasimos Petratos & Evangelia Delidou (GRE) narrowly missed the top five.
At the race’s onset, Karpinska & Morgan (USA) led after taking an advantageous inshore route. However, after passing the lighthouse at the Glénan islands, Yven & Berrehar (FRA) and Gerckens & Tassin (BEL) accelerated to take the lead. Approximately five miles from the top mark at Cap Caval, Karpinska & Morgan (USA) tacked north as Waksman & Pacheco (URU) followed suit, moving into third place.
The French and Belgian teams approached Cap Caval nearly side by side, with increasing wind and sea conditions approaching three meters. Both teams opted to raise the gennaker instead of the spinnaker and began a wild reach, dashing along with water cascading across the deck. Later, in the downwind ride, with spinnakers deployed, the leading boats surged ahead.
“We recorded wind speeds of 32 knots and reached a top boat speed of 19 knots,” noted Lois Berrehar. “We used the small spinnaker and felt satisfied with our choice, as the risks were outweighed by the potential rewards.” Charlotte Yven remarked: “Our initial goal was to get acquainted with the boat and our rivals. As always, we strive for optimal preparation and to understand the weather conditions. Following that, we seek ways to enhance the boat’s speed by exploring different settings and modes. This race served as excellent preparation for the final.”
Gerckens & Tassin (BEL) were closely competing with the French team for the lead, but an issue with the spinnaker sheet compelled them to drop their kite. “Our objective from the start was straightforward; make the top five, and we are pleased with that,” said Jonas Gerckens. “It was unfortunate to have a problem, but it was great to compete against Charlotte and Lois, who are among the favorites for the championship, and our speed felt competitive.”
Ben Daniel & Sarah Nicholson (CAN) claimed the fifth qualifying position for the final. This marked their first race together, and although both are Canadians, they live 4000 miles apart on Canada’s East and West Coasts. “Our goal was to secure a spot in the final, so we are absolutely thrilled with the outcome,” Sarah Nicholson commented. “We devised a game plan to stay on the left, anticipating a favorable shift. Initially, the strategy did not pay off, and we were trailing quite a few competitors, but by the Glénan islands, our plan began to succeed. We may have overstood a bit, but coming in using the Code Zero with the scow bow was fast.”
“After Cap Caval, the British team ahead began to pull away, but we felt confident in fifth place with a solid lead over sixth,” added Ben Daniel. “Like several other competitors, we capsized a few times and had issues with the spinnaker sheets. We kept checking behind us, but we never felt truly threatened. Now that we’ve made it to the final, we need to set a new objective!”
Atool Sinha & Sweta Shervegar (IND) withdrew from the race due to an injury to Atool. The team is now safely ashore, with a special mention to Tim Lemeer & Lisa Vos (NED) who also retired and stayed behind to assist, putting another competitor’s safety ahead of their own results.
The ODHWC Race Committee has announced that the Region Bretagne Race (Elimination 2) has been postponed until Friday, 27 September, with a start time no earlier than 1700 (UTC+2).
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