Co-skippers: top sailors on the bench!

Co-skippers: some of the best sailors in the world!

News, Spotlight, Class40, Ocean Fifty, Focus on

Kito was already emphasising this particular feature of the MED MAX I Occitanie - Saïdia Resorts: double-handed ocean racing. And in double-handed racing, the skipper is just as important as the co-skipper. Today, we know the faces (and track records) of all the 'assistants'. And it's fair to say that there's going to be some serious competition! Here's a closer look at some of the top names.

In the Ocean Fifty, while most of the sailors have long since given the name of their 'double', there were still some questions. In particular, a certain Yann Eliès, whose presence on a boat for the MED MAX I Occitanie - Saïdia Resorts we knew from a few indiscretions, without really knowing which one. All the more so as we'd seen him sailing in the Grand Prix on Anne-Claire Le Berre's 'Upwind by MerConcept', Baptiste Hulin's 'Viabilis Océans' and recently with Thibaut Vauchel-Camus, with whom he raced the Route des Terre-Neuvas.

And it is indeed on this 'Solidaires En Peloton' that the man considered to be the most accomplished sailor in France (and elsewhere, let's be chauvinistic) will set off from Port-Camargue. "We'll be going head to head for three or four days between Port-Camargue, Sicily and Morocco, recently joked the man who, at just 50 years of age, has an astonishing list of achievements: three times winner of the double-handed Transat Jacques-Vabre (2013, 2015, 2019), including one in the Multi50 class and two in the Imoca class; three times winner of the Solitaire du Figaro (2012, 2013, 2015); two times winner of the Jules Vernes Trophy (crewed round the world race) with Bruno Peyron (2002, 2005). 2^e in the Route du Rhum 2018. Two Vendée Globes: withdrawal (fractured femur) in 2008, then 5^e in 2016. Phew

On Viabilis Océans, young Baptiste Hulin has also found his top gun in Thomas Rouxel. An experienced Figaro skipper in his early days, the forty-year-old, now based in Lorient, finished in 2nd place.^e in the 2017 Transat Jacques-Vabre aboard Sébastien Josse's Ultim "Gitana 17", then 5^e in 2021 and 4^e in 2023 aboard Thomas Coville's Sodebo3!

There's also some big news at Koesio, where Erwan Le Roux wasted no time in snapping up the Spaniard Pablo Santurde del Arco, nicknamed in the sailing world "the co-skipper who wins everything"! At 36, the native of Santander has one of the finest track records as a team-mate, especially in Class40. To put it simply and concisely, since his debut on the Class40 circuit, over 32 races, he has claimed 30 podium finishes and 17 victories, 'passing' four skippers, the last of whom was Alberto Bona (IBSA Group)! His first steps as a multihull team-mate are eagerly awaited.

And watch out for the MED MAX I Occitanie - Saïdia Resorts and the other duos who aren't exactly 'one-armed': the women's double Anne-Claire Le Berre and Elodie Jane Mettraux ('Upwind by Merconcept'), the experienced Fabrice Cahierc and Aymeric Chappellier ('Realites'), the pairing of friends Matthieu Perraut and Kevin Bloch ("Inter Invest"), the pairing of Sébastien Rogues and Jean-Baptiste Gellée ("Primonial"), leaders in the Ocean Fifty Series and winners of the Route des Terre-Neuvas. Or the Laurent Bourguès-Clément Giraud pairing ("Mon Bonnet Rose"), with their roots in the south of France, well capable of making a splash in the Mediterranean.
Luke Berry, who had to make a stopover in the Azores with his "Le Rire Médecin - Lamotte" also suffering damage to a float, will be working with Antoine Joubert, a great specialist in "two or three-legged" boats with over twenty years' experience. It remains to be seen who will accompany Christopher Pratt from Marseilles on his 'Wind of Trust - Fondation pour l'Enfance', which is still undergoing refit following damage to her float during the Route des Terre-Neuvas.

Watch out for the so-called amateur crews, most of whom are Southerners with a good knowledge of sailing in the Mediterranean. There are some interesting duos, some of whom have been sailing together for a long time, while others are made up of enthusiasts teaming up with more seasoned youngsters. Admittedly, they are at a slight disadvantage with their Class40 sharps, which logically perform less well than the scows. But we know (and so do they): the weather in the Med can throw up some surprises!

In the Class40s, Mikael Mergui (Centrakor), the 'boss' of the Mediterranean after a thunderous 2024 debut on the circuit, will form a much-anticipated pair with Corentin Douguet, 50 years old and wearing almost as much foulies, who has competed in the Mini6.50, Figaro and Class40.

Achille Nebout (Amarris) will be sailing "back home" with his faithful lieutenant Gildas Mahé, with whom he won the last Québec-Saint-Malo.

Skipper-skipper Aurélien Ducroz (Crosscall) has signed up the young Spanish prodigy Pep Costa, a rising star in ocean racing, now based in Lorient and who has just won a 'steering wheel' with the VSF team in the Class40 class. And who will have just recovered from the Solitaire du Figaro, which finished on September 15!

Among the Italians, Ambrogio Beccaria (Alla Grande Pirelli), the last winner of the CIC Transat, will be forming a formidable duo with his friend Alberto Riva, who unfortunately has now been made redundant following the loss of his Class40 in the Quebec-Saint-Malo race. The two members of the 'squadra azzura' were to be rivals in the MedMax. Their combined talents are going to cause a lot of damage!

Another formidable transalpine double-handed team, the two ministries Matteo Sericano and Lucas Rosetti aboard "Group Tyrolit", with their brand new scow.

As for Andrea Fornero ('Influence Two'), he too has recently turned his attention to Spain by taking on Carlos Manera Pascual, recent winner of the Transat Niji40 (Class40 transatlantic race between Belle Ile en Mer and Marie Galante) with Xavier Macaire. And he'll certainly be arriving in Port-Camargue well honed after the CIC Normandy Channel Race.

Here too, watch out for the so-called amateur crews, most of whom are southerners with a good knowledge of sailing in the Mediterranean, interesting duos, some of whom have been sailing together for a long time, others made up of enthusiasts teaming up with more seasoned youngsters. Admittedly, they are at a slight disadvantage with their older generation Class40s, known as sharps, which logically perform less well than the scows, with their more rounded noses. But we know (and so do they): the weather in the Med can throw up some surprises!

JLR