Experience the live start of the 2024 Vendée Globe! Watch as 40 skippers set off on a solo, non-stop, and unassisted round-the-world race.
40 solo skippers will start the Vendée Globe Sunday off Les Sables d’Olonne, France on the west coast of France.
There are three British entries in this tenth edition . . . Pip Hare, Sam Goodchild and Smantha Davies.
The race itself starts at 13:15hrs CET (12:15 UTC).
Once the starting gun has been fired and the first few miles have been covered, the fleet should therefore sail downwind.
For the 40 solo skippers who will start the Vendée Globe Sunday off Les Sables d’Olonne on the west coast of France, the first few hours look set to offer a relatively gentle introduction to the non-stop race around the world which takes place every four years.
Instead of the hazardous autumn storms which often buffet the Bay of Biscay in early November a benign 5-10 knots of wind is expected to send the record sized fleet of 40 IMOCA 60 footers on their way.
Indeed many of the racers would prefer more wind to propel them southwards towards Cape Finisterre on the NW corner of Spain and open the giant fleet up quicker and so reduce the potential risk of collisions.
The solo skippers, who variously expect to be at sea for between 70 and 110 days, will need to be on a state of high alert. Even so the sailors are by and large pleased to be set for a slower and easier beginning to the race.
Britain’s Pip Hare . . . “I think it is going to be kind to us. I would have preferred to have a bit more wind and I think everyone is a bit nervous about the fog. To be honest all anyone cares about is getting away safely.”
“Down the line it looks complicated. I think we will get to Finisterre and then not 100% sure after that what it is looking like. We just need focus first and foremost on a safe start.”
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