The Imoca are 60-foot Open monohull yachts mainly intended to race in the Vendée Globe. Find here the latest news and investigations from Tip & Shaft on the subject.
After seven years at Sodebo at the start of May the career of internationally renowned Jean-Luc Nélias, 59, changed when he was appointed the team manager of Charlie Dalin’s Apivia Imoca project. Here he explains the reasons for this change of direction to Tip & Shaft and tells us about his first couple of months in his new role.
In the context of a real boom for most ocean racing fleets in France and even seemingly despite the health crisis, the demand for high level offshore race training is growing sharply, to the point that many centres are approaching full capacity. Tip & Shaft looks at the structures of France.
When five times round the world navigator Simon ‘SiFi’ Fisher starts The Ocean Race Europe with the 11th Hour Racing Team it will mark the real start of the journey towards The Ocean Race 2022-2023. Winner of The Volvo Ocean Race in 2014-15 with Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing, his sixth race will be encompass a whole new challenge as the race adopts the IMOCA. Tip & Shaft caught up with SiFi in Lorient just before the race starts….
The Vendée Globe 2020-2021 prize giving ceremony took place on Saturday in Les Sables d’Olonne, and as such is a great opportunity for Tip & Shaft to take stock of this ninth edition, seen from the side of the skippers’ sponsors. The results can mostly be considered to be very positive, hence the desire of many to sign up for the next four years, most often with increased budgets and greater ambitions.
The new Imoca rule which will be applicable from 2022 to 2025, was voted on at the class association’s general assembly on April 15. To understand the main developments, Tip & Shaft tells more about this rule with some IMOCA experts.
Forced to retire from the 2020 Vendée Globe because of the dismasting of Corum L’Épargne, Nicolas Troussel relaunches his Imoca at the end of next week, three weeks before the start of The Ocean Race Europe on which he will compete with Sébastien Josse, Benjamin Schwartz and Marie Riou. Tip & Shaft spoke with the sailor from Plougasnou.
Two months after her return (out of the race) from the Vendée Globe, Sam Davies is now on course for the Transat Jacques Vabre, for which she should soon announce the “experienced co-skipper” who will sail with her on Initiatives Coeur. Tip & Shaft took this opportunity to chat things over with the British skipper who is determined to set out on a Vendée Globe campaign once again.
Between July 2022 and September 2023 it seems like as many as five round the globe races could set off in just about every conceivable format solo, double or crewed, mainly intended for amateur or semi pro sailors. Tip & Shaft look at the budgets, the contexts and the risks.
Although the ninth Vendée Globe is not yet finished many teams and skippers are already busy preparing for the next edition. Between new build projects and the already active second-hand market, Tip & Shaft takes stock.
Competing on the Vendée Globe, the America’s Cup with Emirates Team New Zealand, The Ocean Race with the new Imoca for 11th Hour Racing and a Class40 with a new Pogo built at Structures, clearly Guillaume Verdier’s collective is busy at the moment. The designer took time to answer questions from Tip & Shaft.
At the age of 42, Antoine Koch has had a dual career as a sailor and an engineer, which enabled him back at the start of the last decade to join Gitana Team. Since 2018, he has been working alongside Thomas Ruyant on enhancing the amazing performance of the Verdier-designed Imoca LinkedOut, one of the favourites of the 2020 Vendée Globe. Tip & Shaft met up with him to find out more.
The last preparatory practice race before Vendée Globe organized by the pole Finistère race off Port-la-Forêt ended last Thursday. Charlie Dalin was out there in the mix and, at a month before the start of the ninth Vendée Globe it was the ideal opportunity to catch up with the skipper of Apivia, one of the favourites for the solo round the world race.
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