New French challenger

The Daily Sail catches up with K Yachting's visionary boss Stéphane Kandler

If you haven't heard of Stéphane Kandler , then you will have heard of K-Yachting. This company, started by Kandler and his father Otwin in 1989, today seems to have it finger in many many pies in the yacht racing world from running fleets of boats, to organising events such as the One Ton Cup and Pro-Am Cup, to having an on-line chandlery business run out of their headquarters in Touloise, France.

Outside of France they are probably best known for their Krazy K-Yote two ( yours now for US$ 300k) a radical design by Juan Kouyoumdjian - who was subsequently snapped up by Prada. This boat featured a fixed unstayed wingmast and famously got the boat thrown out of the 1999 Admiral's Cup.

K-Yachting also manage the 470 sailor, Nicholas Charbonnier, 2002 European champion in Tallinn, who previously won four world championships in the 420 - the same record as Chris Dickson.

But in recent months K-Yachting have jumped headlong into the international Grand Prix arena with the announcement of their challenge for the America's Cup after this one.

Leading their AC campaign is Dawn Riley who they met when she sailed one of their IC45s at the One Ton Cup in Pwllheli in 2001. "We had a good contact. She was saying she wanted to sail the America’s Cup. We were saying – we want the same – let’s go!" says Kandler.

Another French America's Cup challenge is not something to get the pulse racing. Even French people have admitted to The Daily Sail that French sailors tend not to be great team players and hence poorly suited to the America's Cup arena. But Kandler is worldly enough to acknowledge this. After all, he has spent most of his professional life trying to indoctrinate French sailors into Anglo-Saxon style racing in high performance one designs. It was K Yachting who were the driving force behind popularising the Jeanneau OD35 and subsequently the Mumm 30, which they were responsible for getting chosen as the boat for the Tour Voile, where it will remain until 2007.

"That is the reason why I say that K-Yachting is different in the French market and in the French sailing world, because we always had that in mind, trying to see what is going on where sailing was invented," says Kandler. "When you go to Key West or England, New Zealand, Australia - you see sail racing is completely different to what it is in France.

"When we first came [to France] with the Mumm 30, people said there is no chance for this boat - ‘it was too complicated, too technical’ and we managed to do it and the Tour de France a la Voile really exploded thanks to this boat. So the French are very particular - they like singlehanded, that is their main thing. It is like a microcosm."

Kandler maintains that they have always taken a more cosmopolitan approach. "When I say we are open to the world – we had Jochen Schueman, we had Team New Zealand, Chris Dickson - all the top guys have been on the K-Yachting boats. In France when we were doing that no one was interested in it, they only want to see Loick Peyron..."

"For me multihulls [60ft tris] is just great sailing, but the stage where it is now is at a very low level. I’m sure if you took any America's Cup sailor on these boats they would really appreciate it. I think the America's Cup on this kind of boat would be just fantastic. I am convinced it is the future of sailing for sure."

Kandler admits that the America’s Cup doesn’t have a good reputation in France and he is critical of the Le Defi. "Part of the reason is that people think each time we go we will be far behind and we have no chance. It is also true that they don't get a good image of the event, because everything they are doing around it is not well explained and they always have excuses when they lose. This time it was they don't have enough time or money - things they knew from the beginning: Then don’t go or you are lying to your sponsors. And there have been many sponsors who once wanted to go there and then they said 'if we don't get through to the semi final, it will be a disaster'. Then they did an interview when they lost and they said – “oh no, it is not a disaster, it is just a step”.

He thinks it is remarkable that the French haven't put together a more successful challenge. "We lost and we lost and put in some effort. But like with the English - they haven’t sailed the America’s Cup for 16 years. The French have been sailing the America’s Cup since 1980 and are still not able to win it or even get through."

For this reason he is planning on recruiting internationally. "I don't think a French America’s Cup team can win only with French people - I think they have to accept that - especially on the design team. No way."

An obvious man to get behind the drawing board is Juan Kouyoumdjian. "Yes we have a long history with Juan but for sure we will try and attract people who have the same philosophy," says Kandler.

Personnel-wise aside from Dawn Riley, top French match racer Thierry Peponnet is on board and Nicholas Charbonnier, who has already proved himself on the junior match racing stage, is also likely to be involved. "Bertrand Pace, we have a very good relationship with him. We think he is a very strong guy," says Kandler. "He is one of the best in the world, but in France nobody knew him before he started to sail with Team New Zealand.

"After that we want to have a very good architect who has a good view of the America’s Cup boats, who has a good view of the America’s Cup boats and Dawn has many many relationships so we hope to get some people who are involved now in other campaigns, so it is difficult to say who will be there."

No firm decisions on personnel will be made until the Cup is over at the end of February. "Ideally we want to wait until after the Cup to buy boats because many things will change - there is speculation about changing the rule, the place it will be, etc. There are so many aspects we have to think about before buying a boat. If you buy one and it turns out to be a multihull event you look a little bit stupid if you have an ACC boat. But actually Dawn and Thierry Peponnet are in NZ looking at boats and possibilities."

Obviously the major step is to get the money. They are looking to raise 50 million Euros (around £33 million). "What we want to do is in 2003, is to have half of the budget to make sure we have everything done, we can to start the research, buy two boats for training and having a crew starting to work."

We hope to learn more details about K-Yachting's AC campaign when they hold a press conference in Auckland in February.

Meanwhile among their other activites it looks like 2002 was the last year the One Ton Cup will be held in IC45s. "The IC45 is finished," states Kandler. "With big boats like that it is impossible to build a class. The 40 was a success because Farr was behind it. The 50 footers were the last big boat class and they died from the same illness. With One Designs there is a limit and there are different goals. You need people who are prepared to spend a lot of money on one designs."

Saying this he is enthusiastic about his new K-One Design 33, another design by Juan Kouyoumdjian.

Whether K-Yachting's AC challenge has legs remains to be seen. Riley has been around the Cup scene long enough to know what ingredients go into making a winning America's Cup program. It will be down to the Kandlers to ensure they get suitable funding in place and this will be no mean feat in a France which seems understandably apathetic about their country's participation in the America's Cup.