12th four years ago, Clarisse Crémer took 11th place in the Vendée Globe 2024-2025 on Monday after 77 days 15 hours and 34 minutes. She then set course for La Rochelle, with the Les Sables channel closed due to storm conditions. Before sailing back up the channel on Saturday, she spoke to Tip & Shaft about her second circumnavigation.
Can you tell us about this special arrival?
It was an emotional lift! I’m not going to hide the fact that when Alan (Roberts) left me a voice message on Sunday to tell me that I wasn’t going to be able to get into the channel, that the team wouldn’t be able to get on board and that I’d have to go to La Rochelle, it was a hard moment to live through, especially as I’d had 50 knots of wind since the morning. As I’d been caught a bit off guard, I was under two reefs-J2, it was a bit hot, I saw this front coming in at 55 knots, so that on top of it, it was a lot! There was a brief hour of despair, during which I thought to myself “What kind of joke is this?” In the end, I quickly switched to positive mode, and as Benjamin (Dutreux) had enough of a lead over me and there was no longer any notion of a race, I went into ultra safe mode, three reefs and a storm jib, telling myself that my new mission was to cross the line and get to La Rochelle.
And how did you feel when you crossed the line?
I was really moved, I really realised that I was completing my second Vendée Globe, even though there was no one there and it was 3am. After that, the short time I spent alone on the way to Oléron was invaluable in helping me land gently, before Alan and Henri (the boat captain) joined me on the boat. We then had 5-6 hours during which we had time to debrief a bit, had a good laugh, and then a big surprise with everyone in the channel at La Rochelle, it was too much of a party, so I didn’t feel too aggrieved or frustrated. What’s more, we’ve found the recipe for two finishes, as I’ll be sailing up the Les Sables channel on Saturday!
“I was much more in control”
Has this last part of the race since Cape Horn been a long one?
No, we’ve been through so much that it feels like it’s all gone by in a flash! The only moment of respite was just after Cape Horn, when I had a slightly cooler day, otherwise it was crazy! We went from system to system, the cold front at Cabo Frio was very difficult, we were in Figaro mode looking for the small door to get out of it. Then, the trade winds were very unstable, the Doldrums were fast, but under a sort of giant and very strange squall which lasted twelve hours; and at the end, with Benj’, we crossed three low pressure systems and two ridges of high pressure in five days, often in cloudy skies, we were going from 8 to 35 knots, it was really super intense. That’s why when I came out of all that, I was bursting, whereas sometimes, at the finish, if you’re a bit further away from another competitor, you relax a bit, you put your boat away… That wasn’t the case at all here, I think that on the last two nights, I only slept for an hour, I was at the top of my game right to the end.
Just for a few hours, you didn’t make the top 10. Where is the gap with Benjamin?
After Madeira, I made a good move in the ridge of high pressure, but in the next front, I couldn’t hoist the sail I wanted because of a problem with the furler, so I couldn’t keep up with him in terms of speed. Now, he was always a notch above me, in terms of manoeuvres and knowledge of his boat, and he often found the speed a little faster, but I still feel like I was beaten by someone stronger than me. A top 10 finish would have been the icing on the cake, but the number doesn’t mean much to me, I’m more interested in the way I experienced my race. As soon as I reached the equator on the descent, I was very happy, I remember telling myself that my Vendée Globe had already been won, because I felt good at sea, I was able to keep up the right speed, manage my damage, get myself back on track when I made a mistake… In the end, that was my goal: to progress from my previous Vendée and enjoy the adventure I was living.
Did you enjoy it more than you did four years ago?
It was very different. The first time, there were plenty of moments of joy, but also plenty of moments of suffering, during which I felt emotionally overwhelmed by events. This time, I was much more in control. Even though it was difficult at times, I bounced back quicker each time, I was serene, calmed down, so overall, yes, I enjoyed myself a lot more, this feeling of being in control of my emotions was great.
“This epilogue comes like a healing”
Do you feel that with this result – and by managing to drive this foiler well – you’ve acquired more sporting legitimacy?
I’ll leave that judgement to those watching the race from the outside, but I didn’t feel at all overwhelmed by my machine. At times, it was even frustrating, because I wasn’t able to exploit its full potential, particularly with my two broken foil jacks, but I felt in my place and that was very precious.
Have you discovered any new skills?
One of the many reasons I wanted to go back was that I’d identified a lot of areas where I thought I could improve. So I’m really happy to say that I’ve made a lot of progress in these areas, particularly in damage management. Last time, I spent an enormous amount of energy despairing over my damage, but that wasn’t the case at all. There was a good balance between my team helping me to resolve the things I didn’t know how to do and finding solutions on my own. I’ve gained a lot of self-confidence, so it’s clearly an improvement in my skills that has helped me to get through the race.
When you look back on this cycle, with all the problems you’ve had to deal with and a project between Lorient and England that wasn’t easy from a logistical point of view, what feeling predominates?
A feeling of accomplishment. I’m not at all claiming to have done everything right, but I’ve always fought hard and I’m happy to finish this Vendée, and in this way too. It allows me to finish in style this four year course which has been tedious, this epilogue comes like a healing, a reconciliation with certain aspects of ocean racing which have sometimes made me suffer a lot. It’s a bit corny to say that, but it’s a bit of a happy ending to a feel-good movie!
“I can still improve”
Do you think there’s still a long way to go to finish in the top 5?
There is a step up, yes, especially in the way the frontrunners manage to average 25 knots for three days. In psychological terms, even if the boats in front don’t crash as much, it’s really hard to do, you really have to unplug your brain. I also think I’ll be able to bridge a big gap in terms of preparation, particularly in terms of performance and speed polars, which I didn’t have the time to do this time, and also in terms of manoeuvres. Now, I tell myself that if for four years I’m accompanied by the means to do things to the full, I can still progress, but to say that I can reach that level would be presumptuous.
A word about the Vendée Globe for your husband Tanguy Le Turquais, who is battling to finish as the first daggerboard boat?
I know that this daggerboard thing is making his hair stand on end, because he’s a competitor, a Figaro racer, and he’s really into it! I think he’s had a great Vendée, he’s been especially impressive in the psychological and technical management of his damage, because he’s destroyed and rebuilt his boat in terms of structures, lost his means of communication… With my experience of a first Vendée, I think that on the other hand he’s had a bit of a rookie side to his race management, in the sense that as soon as he lost out to his direct rivals, it took him a bit longer to bounce back psychologically. The ‘it’s never over’ aspect of the Vendée Globe, he forgot that a little at times. But I’m too proud of his Vendée.
What do you want to do now, to continue?
First of all rest, sleep, good food, enjoying my family and the comforts ashore. I also want to take the time to think about what’s next, because I’ve just come through four very intense years, and my body and brain need a little break to avoid repeating certain mistakes and to do things right. Now, even if I say to myself that you only have one life and you have to manage to do everything at once, this Vendée Globe hasn’t put me off ocean racing, which is such an all-consuming passion that it makes you want to go back to it, my sailor side doesn’t want to stop.
Photo: Anne Beaugé / Alea
