Conditions favorable for sailors to challenge Jérémie Beyou’s 2016 record time from New York to Vendée, France
NEW YORK (April 29, 2024) — In exactly one month — on Wednesday, May 29 — the globe’s top skippers will set sail from New York City toward Vendée, France, for the final qualifying and selection race for the Vendée Globe: the most challenging sailing race around the world.
A few days prior to the race, on Friday, May 24, all IMOCA boats — the impressive 60-foot long racing boats that can sail at speeds up 50 miles per hour — will participate in an exhibition show in New York Bay. New Yorkers will be able to watch the Vendée Liberty Show from Manhattan’s West Side or from Governors Island, which will provide the best views.
Then on May 29 at 8 p.m. French time (2 p.m. local time), off the coast of New York, 31 sailors will line up for the start of the New York Vendée — twice as many competitors as the first edition in 2016.
The list of skippers are some of the top IMOCA sailors Skippers | New York Vendée 2024 (newyorkvendee.org)
This race, which includes the favorites for the Vendée Globe, is likely to set a new transatlantic record: downwind conditions are expected propel the first competitors toward Vendée quickly, and considering the technological progress made by IMOCA boats, the record time of 9d 16h 57min 52s set by Jérémie Beyou in 2016 should be beaten.
Exponential International Growth
From one edition to the next, the Vendée Globe has become increasingly international. Following up a high set in 2020, the 2024 edition is once again a record year with 16 international candidates — hailing from nations outside the host country of France — proof that the phenomenon is taking hold over time.
The New York Vendée – Les Sables d’Olonne, the final qualifying and selection race for the Vendée Globe, further underlines this trend. Among the 31 competitors are 14 international skippers, representing over 45% of the fleet and 11 nationalities.
The race’s appeal continues to extend beyond national borders, as illustrated by Scott Shawyer, who aims to become the first Canadian to complete the Vendée Globe as he prepares for the 2028 edition: “This race means a lot to me, as it will be my first solo race, my first solo transatlantic race and therefore a whole series of firsts. It’s a big step in my program,” Shawyer said.
New York Vendée organizers will also hold media availability on May 23, when the IMOCA boats will be docked in New York City and Newport.
About The Vendée Globe
The Vendée Globe is the biggest sailing race round the world, solo, non-stop and without assistance. The event launched in the wake of the Golden Globe which had initiated the first circumnavigation of this type via the three capes (Good Hope, Leeuwin and Horn) in 1968. Only one out of the nine pioneers who had set off in 1968 succeeded in returning to Falmouth, the major port of British Cornwall. On November 26, 1989, 13 sailors took the start of the first edition of The Vendée Globe, which lasted over three months. Only seven returned to Les Sables d’Olonne, France. Over nine editions to date, only 89 of 167 contenders have managed to cross the finish line of what is now called the “Everest of the Seas.” To learn more, visit vendeeglobe.org.
We wish a good race to the 33 IMOCA skippers of
The Transat CIC who have just taken off Lorient to go to New York, the start city of the next race of the circuit, the very last one before the world tour, the one that counts more than all others, New York Sold – Les Sables d’Olonne!