eol with MrBookmaker.com and Romain Attanasio in La Solitaire Afflelou Le Figaro
[ Sunday, August 7th, at 7AM ]
Eol will be again in La Solitaire Afflelou Le Figaro with one of its clients MrBookmaker.com, Title-Sponsor of Romain Attanasio.
This Sunday, the skipper of MrBookmaker.com, Romain Attanasio, will take the start of the La Solitaire Afflelou Le Figaro, for the sixth year running. For the past 36 years, the race has been contended by the very best skippers in solo configuration aboard the Figaro Beneteau (sailing boats measuring around 10m). Disputed over a period of three and a half weeks, the adventure begins with a prologue in Perros-Guirec in the NW of France on 5th August, before taking the start of the first leg to Getxo-Bilbao, in the Spanish Basque Country, on 7th August. Under the protective wing of his sponsor MrBookmaker, one of the leading betting websites for sporting events in Europe and the top sport betting website in Benelux and France, Romain has his sights on doing the very best he can when the battle reaches fever pitch in the 4 legs leading him around France, Spain and Ireland.
La Solitaire Afflelou Le Figaro is a race considered as the “most legendary and the most difficult, something for the purists, the hard nuts and those with real talent. An obligatory springboard towards a solo career on the bigger boats, a return to their roots for others who are back for more, this annual rendez-vous is beyond compare.” For Romain : “La Solitaire is a reference point in racing. It enables you to measure yourself in relation to the other racers. It's the most complete race there is as it marries regatta racing with that of offshore.”
The prologue will take place on 5th August on the NW coast of France and the start of the first 390 mile leg will be given on Sunday 7th, setting sail for Getxo-Bilbao. The remaining three legs will be from Bilbao (Spain)-La Rochelle (France), La Rochelle-Cork (Ireland) and Cork-Port Bourgenay, in Talmont Saint Hilaire near the Sables d’Olonne on the Atlantic coast of France. This ultimate destination will host both the race finish and the crowning of the outright winner between 26th and 28th August. Four legs, over three weeks of racing, La Solitaire provides the skippers with the opportunity to battle it out in an extremely competitive and tactical race, combining speed and endurance over a 1710 mile course. The complex balance between the 'pebble-dash' and the open ocean provides the skippers with the opportunity to stretch themselves to the limit, both physically and mentally, over around 12 days of intensity out on the water, heightened by an extreme lack of sleep...
During the legs Romain, like the other 45 skippers, is not allowed outside assistance, satellite or mobile phone communication. The VHF radio can only be used to contact the race organisers and he will have to pour over the weather solely during the stopovers as, once he's racing, he will be limited to simple faxes from the weather stations en route.
This Sunday, Romain Attanasio will set out all alone on his boat, without assistance, with one sole goal...success.
Interview with Romain Attanasio before the start.
Are you and your boat now well prepared?
Yes and no. In general, yes, despite the fact that we found the budget very late in the day and that I haven't raced in the Figaro this season. I didn't do the Génerali Méditerranée and I didn't do the Saint Nazaire-Cuba. Those are two races that I really wanted to do and they're important for the preparation. I think those that did race have a slight advantage. I would say that I'm prepared in the sense that the boat belongs to my company so it's been available to me for the whole of the start of the year. I trained in Port La Forêt, as I am a member of the centre there. In this sense, I've been able to train as I would if I'd have had the money so I think I'm equally matched with the others in terms of training and preparation, though I haven't raced the Figaro circuit like them.
What are the hazards you have prepared yourself for?
Le Figaro is a big trap in itself! There are hazards all the way along. You sail through areas where strategy is very much in evidence: the passage of Ouessant, etc where there's a lot of current. You know that the wind conditions are never very stable in summer which means that there are some tricky passages each year. I know all about that through having messed up the Figaro in the second leg last year, stuck off the tip of Portland. I was hooked up while the others escaped so I'm certainly going to be on the look-out this time.
Why is La Solitaire Afflelou Le Figaro such a difficult event?
There's lots of reasons. First of all it's long, not as long as the Vendée Globe because it's only four days, but for that very reason you're flat out for each leg, working at 100%, without sleeping. Added to that is the fact that the boats are identical which means that the difference in speed is miniscule. What that signifies is that the slightest fault, the slightest little thing you do wrong, is paid for in hard cash. That can happen when you're in contact with another boat for 2 days, trying to trim the boat as best you can, trying not to sleep, not letting go of the helm so as to claw back 100/200m. Then you're happy because you're ahead and all of a sudden you make a mistake with the manoeuvres or whatever it may be, and you lose 500m; you lose a whole day's work. That's what the Figaro is all about. That's why it's difficult.
What is your game plan for this Solitaire 2005?
I'm going to try to stay cool and not pressure myself. That's often the problem so I'm going to try and head out without any pressure on my shoulders, and do the best I can, and then we'll see what happens.
Who are the skippers to beat this season?
Everyone! The Figaro is always very open every year. There are always fifteen or so boats that are in with a chance of victory. I think everyone stands a chance. I don't mean that I'm going to win the Figaro; that's not my objective. I know that I'm still a long way off that and that I'm not up to the grade yet.
It's your 6th participation in La Solitaire, what do you think of this year's course?
It's very good. I think it's really very interesting. It has both the offshore and coastal sailing. While last year's course was rather poor with the legs being too short and much of a muchness, this one is great. It's a course I like very much.
What are your strengths in relation to the other competitors?
I've got the boat up to speed and they say that speed breeds intelligence. When you have the speed you always get into the key spots and it works well.
Do you feel apprehensive about anything?
Y...eah! Sailing is a mechanical sport so the first worry, though worry's a big word, is that you're never entirely protected from breaking something. To follow on from that, we are nonetheless dependant on the weather conditions, and though it's the name of the game to play them to best effect, we're not protected from getting trapped in a wind hole or getting caught up in a current which is slightly stronger than that which your neighbours are sailing in or getting stuck like I did last year. I am not so much worried, as wary of the race itself or a slight error before the final ranking. My best place in the Figaro was 12th and that's a killer because each time I race 3 good legs I often get trapped on another. Last year was a very poor Figaro for me and there were quite a few times in other years when I was fourth or in the top ten and then dropped to 20th. I've got experience though and all that remains is to get well placed so we'll see...
Where do you get the drive to race single-handed?
The Vendée Globe '89 and the Route du Rhum '90. I was young, a child even, and I sailed a little with my great uncle in Port Navalo, in the Morbihan, SW Brittany, though coming from a family of mountaineers it wasn't much. This great uncle was a Breton and he got me into sailing. He also took me to the Paris boat show. I loved that. I thought the Vendée Globe was great and when Florence Arthaud won the Route du Rhum aboard a trimaran I was transfixed. It was all the more impressive because it was single-handed and I loved the boats, and I said to myself that one day, when I was big, that I'd do the Vendée Globe. The Vendée is a good thing but you have to know how to sail well before you do it, go to school if you like. That's why I do the Figaro.
What does your collaboration with MrBookmaker.com mean to you?
It's brought me La Solitaire for starters! I had a big objective for the season: to take part in the race in which I have sailed for six years and for which I have trained relentlessly since February. It's fantastic to have the opportunity to do it again. I hope I'll race well for them and that we'll be able to get to know each other better and that I can continue developing my sailing.
