Lining up for the Artemis Challenge

Six boats confirmed to date for the Open 60 race around the Isle of Wight during Skandia Cowes Week

Sébastien Josse and Mike Golding today confirmed their participation in The Artemis Challenge at Skandia Cowes Week, taking place on 5 August. The entries of two of the favourites for the Vendée Globe further strengthens the IMOCA 60 fleet racing around the Isle of Wight for the £10,000 charity prize fund. The 50-mile sprint will be the final time the two rivals will be able to test boatspeed head-to-head against each other before the Everest of sailing starts in November.

BT and Ecover 3 are currently racing against four British skippers, Dee Caffari ( Aviva), Brian Thompson ( Pindar), Jonny Malbon ( Artemis Ocean Racing II) and Simon Clay ( Artemis Ocean Racing I). This takes the fleet to six with further IMOCA entries expected in the coming weeks.

Seb Josse will be competing on the BT IMOCA 60, which was launched in 2007, as an integral part of the BT Team Ellen project headed up by Dame Ellen MacArthur. Josse undertook his first solo race onboard BT in The Artemis Transat in May and was leading the solo transatlantic race when he was sadly forced to retire. Nonetheless Josse was inspired by the boat’s performance against many of the leading IMOCA sailors and is now in the final phase of preparation for the solo Vendée Globe.

With a fast boat and a wealth of experience from the Figaro, Volvo Ocean Race and IMOCA circuits, Josse is tipped as a skipper to keep an eye on in November. He finished fifth in the 2004 edition of the race despite sailing an older generation boat ( VMI) and hitting a growler in the Southern Ocean.

Speaking from the team’s base in Lorient, Josse commented, “We’ve had a good test run in The Artemis Transat and validated quite a bit on the boat. Since we’ve been back, we have been sailing and BT is now in the shed for some more improvements. We’ll be looking forward to compete against the British pack, especially the ones we haven’t competed against yet and all the while doing it for two great causes, the Ellen MacArthur Trust and the French charity A chacun son Everest. It should be fun and we’re looking forward to the race which is a great addition to Skandia Cowes Week allowing us to showcase the IMOCA class abroad.”

Mike Golding will be competing on Ecover 3, one of the latest generation IMOCA Open 60s. Built in New Zealand, Ecover 3 was launched in 2007 and competed in the Transat Jacques Vabre and EcoverB2B race. Some necessary changes to the keel bulb forced Golding out of The Artemis Transat in May, denying the experienced sailor the chance of defending his title in Boston.

Ecover 3 is now fully ready for the Vendée Globe and The Artemis Challenge at Skandia Cowes Week will be a strong training opportunity in a busy summer for Golding. Mike is undoubtedly one of the most successful solo sailors in Britain and represents one of the best chances of a British skipper winning a singlehanded round the world race since Sir Robin Knox-Johnston won the legendary Golden Globe in 1969.

Golding famously finished third in the last Vendée Globe despite losing his keel just a few miles from the finish line. He has built up a wealth of experience within the IMOCA circuit and the pinnacle of sailing remains his number one priority. Mike will certainly fancy his chances of finishing first in Les Sables D’Olonne at the end of the Vendée Globe.

Speaking from the team’s base in Southampton, Golding commented: “It will be a great spectacle to see the Open 60’s racing around the Island as part of the Artemis Challenge, especially with the backdrop of Skandia Cowes Week. This will be one of the last times that we can race competitively against each other before the start of the Vendée in November, so it will be good to see how we all square up against each other."