Early lead for Cammas

As the 60ft trimaran class' IB Group Challenge race gets underway from Lorient

The season for the French 60ft trimarans got underway yesterday with the start of the 2,600 mile long IB Group Challenge Alpes-Maritimes race from Lorient to Nice.

The course takes the boats out of the Bay of Biscay down to Gibraltar around Malta before returning to the finish line in Alpes-Maritimes leaving Sicily to starboard then Sardinia and Corsica to port.

The six trimarans competing are Pascal Bidégorry who has taken over the helm of Banque Populaire, Franck Cammas on Groupama 2, Michel Desjoyeaux on Geant, Thierry Duprey on Gitana X, Armel Cléach who has taken over from Alain Gautier at the helm of Foncia and Fred le Peutrec on Gitana 11. Each boat is allowed to race with six crew and weather routing is prohibited.

The race organisation of this new event features the familiar figures of Sylvie Viant, Race Director and Rene Boulaire, who is President of the Race Committee, but is organised by Vincent Borde's Welcome On Board company. In France they are well known as the PR/sports marketing company behind both Cammas' Groupama and Roland Jourdain's Open 60 campaign with Sill.

The race got taking part left Lorient yesterday at 13h00GMT and overnight the trimarans have been enjoying sailing at more than 25 knots in a good breeze under a clear sky.

Groupama has pulled into the lead but the fleet remains tightly group. Cammas is taking a more direct route to Finistere than his competitors. The wind is set to get lighter approaching Spain and the boats are expected to round Cape Finistere this afternoon.


Positions at 02h00GMT:
1-Groupama (Franck Cammas) à 2 254 milles de l’arrivée
2-Banque Populaire (Pascal Bidégorry) à 8 milles du leader
3-Gitana 11 (Frédéric Le Peutrec) à 9 millles du leader
4-Géant (Michel Desjoyeaux) à 12 milles du leader
5-Gitana X (Thierry Duprey du Vorsent) à 25 milles du leader
6-Foncia (Armel Le Cléac’h) à 37 milles du leader

Crew list:

Banque Populaire 4 :
Pascal Bidégorry (skipper)
Ronan Lucas
Lionel Lemonchois
Jérémie Beyou
Florent Chastel
Yvan Ravussin

Foncia :
Armel Le Cléac’h (skipper)
Thierry Chabagny
Ronan Le Goff
Damian Foxall
Nicolas Troussel
Thierry Briend

Géant :
Michel Desjoyeaux (skipper)
Jean-Philippe Saliou
Hugues Destremau
Vincent Riou
Emmanuel Leborgne
Nicolas de Castro

Gitana X :
Thierry Duprey du Vorsent (skipper)
Erwan Le Roux
Mayeul Riffet
Nicolas Raynaud
Jacques Guichard
Léopold Lucet

Gitana 11 :
Frédéric Le Peutrec (skipper)
Yann Guichard
Yann Marilley
Loïc Le Mignon
Jean-Baptiste Epron
François Denis

Groupama 2:
Franck Cammas (skipper)
Franck Proffit
Jean-Baptiste Levaillant
Ewen Le Clech
Jacques Caraës
Nicolas Pichelin