The scene is set for the 39th edition of La Solitaire du Figaro: 54 competitors, 5 women and 13 rookies, 3 legs, 1880 nautical miles of racing. From La Rochelle to Vigo in Spain, passing by Cherbourg-Octeville to finish in l’Aber Wrac’h via the Isle of Man, the 2008 Solitaire fleet will be given free rein to show off their talents on a race course carefully planned by race director Jacques Caraës.
79 skippers of which 25 are rookies, 6 are women and 8 from outside France, have registered to take part in La Solitaire du Figaro in 2008. For this 39th edition of the race, the competitors will follow in the footsteps of the original “Course de l’Aurore” race, a race made up of three stages, amounting to a new record 1,880 nautical miles.
La Solitaire du Figaro 2008 returns to the original format: the 39th edition of the race, like the original Course de l’Aurore, it will be made up of three stages, one less yet with even more miles and a new host stop over port. There will be record 1,880 miles to cover over the course of the race between France and Spain and through the Irish and Celtic Seas.
Suzuki signs up to be main sponsor of La Solitaire for the next 3 years, an event they have supported since 2006. Suzuki France and Groupe Le Figaro have signed a partnership deal for 2008, 2009 and 2010. The race therefore calls itself once again “La Solitaire du Figaro” and introduces a new event logo with the main sponsor, Suzuki.
The 2007 edition of La Solitaire Afflelou Le Figaro race has been held in truly wintry conditions: Lots of wind, cold, rain and big seas… A Solitaire held in testing conditions, a Solitaire for the brave. The first leg to Ireland was incredibly varied and tactical, full of opportunities to come back, followed by a second very fast sprint south to Brest for the second leg. Then two huge and memorable storms in the Bay of Biscay, one the competitors had to endure upwind on the third leg and the other downwind with anemometer readings of 50 knots during the final leg. Michel Desjoyeaux (Foncia) proves to the world that when he competes only two other spots remain on the podium at the end of the race. The ‘King of Solo’ continues to show his dominance in this game completely: with four out of four podium finishes, a leg win and logically the overall title holder. Incredible.
Just behind him half a dozen new sailors take some of the glory. Fred Duthil (Distinxion), with good fortune on his side this year, won two legs, the first into Ireland and the final one to Les Sables d’Olonne. Corentin Douguet (E.Leclerc/Bouygues Telecom) gained such a huge time margin winning the leg to La Coruña that he was able to take the third step of the podium on only his second participation in the event, whilst Nicolas Lunven (Bostik) won first place in the Bénéteau Rookie Rankings.
Three thirds; Crosshaven, La Coruna and Les Sables d’Olonne and one memorable 1st place in Brest
What does it feel to have won the La Solitiare for the third time?
Michel Desjoyeaux (Foncia) wins La Solitiare Afflelou Le Figaro race, one of the toughest single-handed sailing events in the French Figaro racing circuit. The third place finish in Les Sables d’Olonne, 41 minutes and 55 seconds behind Fréderic Duthil (Distinxion) and Gérald Veniard (Scutum) respectively, was enough to secure him the overall time lead to clinch the title of winner. Three third places and one win on the second leg produced a sufficient gap with total time deficits to win the race overall.
The skipper of Distinxion, crossed the finish line at 02h20m10s this morning and covered the 340 mile course in 1 day 11 hours, 20 minutes and 10 seconds at an average 9.62 knots.
The sailors competing in La Solitaire Afflelou Le Figaro race are encountering tough conditions for the fourth and final leg between La Coruña in Galicia and the finish in Les Sables d’Olonne. The sea is forecast to be very rough with four to five metre waves and the anemometers are reading 40 knots, due to increase when the front passes bringing gusts of 50 knots before the night is out. More than 200 miles of the 355-mile race have been covered since the start at 3 pm yesterday. Race Director, Jacques Caraës, announced this morning that as a security measure, the Port Bourgenay Mark, south of the Sables d’Olonne, has been removed from the racecourse.
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