Loick Peyron – Transat x 3
03:15 GMT i natt gick Loick Peyron i mål som vinnare i The Artemis Transat. Han vinner för tredje gången, och går då förbi legenden Eric Tabarly, som lyckades vinna det tuffa racet två gånger. Foto: Mark Lloyd.
Loick Peyron on board Gitany Eighty crossed the finish line of The Artemis Transat at 03:15:35 GMT on Saturday, 24th May. His arrival in Boston, USA, marks an historic achievement for this legendary French sailor. He is now the only sailor in history to have won this race three times (1992/1996/2008), exceeding the two-time record he shared with another French sailing legend, Eric Tabarly.
Gitana Eighty finished the 2,982-mile course of The Artemis Transat in a time of 12 days, 11 hours, 15 minutes, 35 seconds (corrected time not including the deduction of the 2.5 hour time allowance awarded by the jury for his rescue of Vincent Riou). In doing so, he has beaten the existing monohull record of 12 days, 15 hours, 18 mins and 8 secs set by Mike Golding onboard Ecover in 2004, by more than four hours.
Peyron’s 1992/1996 victories…
In 1992, in fine style and based upon sound experience and sheer determination to push his steed as hard as possible without going too far, Loïck Peyron won in eleven days, one hour and 35 minutes on board his trimaran Fujicolor. Paul Vatine came second in 12 days 7 hours and 48 minutes, finishing more than one day later, followed by Francis Joyon, third, who was soon to be much talked about.
The 1996 Transat was the tenth in the series and Loïck Peyron once again showed that he was capable of steering a brilliant course with both finesse and prudence. Ahead of Loïck, Laurent Bourgnon turned his trimaran turtle and had to withdraw. Francis Joyon opted for a very northerly route, which turned out to be an excellent choice, but as he was propelled towards victory, he too capsized off the Grand Banks of Newfoundland. At this point in time, those following him lay almost 24 hours behind – Paul Vatine also on a northerly course but 292 miles behind and Loïck Peyron a little more than 334 miles. The tension was maintained right through to the finish as the two yachtsmen played cat and mouse, depending on who made best use of currents and local conditions. In the end, Peyron pulled into the lead, just a puff ahead of Vatine to win in 10 days 10 hours and 5 minutes, leaving Poupon’s record intact. Vatine came in just two hours later.
