The last round, the one of all dangers

A winning return to the Channel for Alexis Loison, who, as he made his way up the Iroise Sea, managed to regain first place. The long procession along the northern coast of Brittany, a short distance from the island of Batz and the Bay of Morlaix, began in a northeasterly wind, gusting to around fifteen knots. This final day at sea marked the end of this long upwind leg and the conclusion of this saga. Alexis Loison on Groupe REEL seemed on track to win in Saint-Vaast-la-Hougue. The 31 competitors now faced this final sprint in single file, nearly 40 miles long.

The current will most certainly be the barrier guard of this last section of this final stage of La Solitaire du Figaro Paprec 2025. After the long climb up the Gascogne, it's now time for the English Channel, the one of all dangers, the one which, almost 20 days ago, was the scene of an anthology first stage. The English Channel, which for the moment is the domain of Alexis Loison (Groupe REEL) and Jules Ducelier (Région Normandie) who are leading the fleet towards Ras Blanchard, the dreaded point which is one of the places in the world with the strongest current. A place that Alexis Loison knows perfectly. The great uncertainty this morning is being able to define the arrival time at the northwest tip of the Cotentin. An ETA which will dictate the course of action for this last day at sea.

"It's a long climb, but it went well for me anyway. For the moment, it's straight along the coast, but to get to Cape La Hague, there will be options, but it will all depend on our arrival time there and the time of the current reversal. For the moment, it's going well, I'm trying not to think too much about the finish, but it's great to have held on like this on this third stage. The road is still long," comments Alexis Loison (Groupe REEL).

Between the islands

Since the western passage of Sein, the fleet has regrouped in a tack along the coast but as the night and the currents progressed, several routes were chosen at the tip of Brittany, between the islands of Molène for the leaders, at Ushant for the pursuers and offshore between the island of Ushant and the rail for the stragglers. But all are now in single file with almost 40 miles of distance between the leader Alexis Loison and Titouan Marilley (Action Enfance No Limit)

"I'm happy to be going to see our friends in Normandy and I hope we'll arrive soon because it's starting to take its toll on my mental strength. I feel like I'm doing everything backwards in this Solitaire. I've clearly been unlucky, but I'll be back next year, that's for sure," Titouan confided.

Keep the current going

Behind Alexis Loison, Jules Ducelier is waiting to try to win his first victory in the Normandy colors. After a very good stage, he is currently ahead of Arno Biston (Article 1).

"It accelerated a little as we passed the tip of Brittany. We arrived against the current in the oven and at Molène, we had to find a small gap to get ahead of the reverse. We're trying to go as far as possible now with this current before there's another reverse. Our plan was pretty precise well before the start. It was prepared. I'm starting to get a little tired, I'm aching all over, but we're attacking the last few hours, we have to give it our all ," comments Jules Ducelier (Région Normandie)

Fight fatigue

Eager to do well until the end on this stage, Tom Goron (Groupe Dubreuil), the youngest in the race, must not give up and admits to collapsing at the end of the course. A great leader and often playing in front, Tom does not give up, but the end of the course will not make his task any easier.

"Crossing the gulf wasn't easy and I'm happy to have managed to make a pretty decent route in terms of positioning. We had quite a lead last night in fact and now we're not making a very good trajectory, we shouldn't have passed in the same place as the others with this reversal of the current. It came back from behind but that's how it is and there's still a long way to go. I have a small problem with my gennaker, I hope we don't have the opportunity to have to take it out otherwise I'm in a bad way. Overall I feel good but I feel like it's going to last a little while longer and that we have to hold on until the end. I hope I can go to the end without collapsing like in the first and second legs. I'm in a good position and I'd like to finish a leg in a good place," analysis Tom Goron (Dubreuil Group).