Gitana 17 is back on the waters of the Morbihan

With six months to go until the Route du Rhum, the undisputed sporting objective for 2018, the Maxi Edmond de Rothschild was relaunched this Monday 7 May in Lorient, Brittany. Following a winter refit geared around optimisation, which mainly focused on making the platform and the existing systems reliable as well as repairing the appendages damaged during the Transat Jacques Vabre, the latest addition to the Gitana fleet is back on the waters of the Morbihan once more. 

Crédit : E Allaire

Vidéo / The first flight, "The Maxi Edmond de Rothschild is safe and stable"

A few weeks ago, on 17 July, the day of her launch in Vannes, the Maxi Edmond de Rothschild joined the Gitana Team. She is leading the way in a new generation of large flying offshore trimarans and her debut flights were eagerly anticipated ...

Crédit : B Stichelbaut / Gitana SA

Maxi / The Maxi Edmond de Rothschild is unveiled

This Thursday 30 March, the Gitana Team invited the press to the Palais de Tokyo museum in Paris to mark the official launch of the Maxi Edmond de Rothschild, a giant' measuring 32 metres long and 23 metres wide, which is undergoing her final few months in the yard after a build process spanning over a year and a half. The launch of this new Gitana craft is scheduled for this July. 

Crédit : Y Zedda / Gitana SA

Ultime / Gitana Team launches the construction of a maxi-multihull

Monday 11 May, at the Multiplast yard, it was the day chosen by Gitana Team to set its compass to the future. Cyril Dardashti, the team’s General Manager, accompanied by the skipper Sébastien Josse and the entire Gitana design office, revealed the stable’s programme for the next five years, notably announcing the launch of the construction of a new generation maxi-multihull.

credit : Y Zedda / Gitana SA

#RDR2014 / March of the Giants!

In the Route du Rhum-Destination Guadeloupe the Ultimate class represents the battle of the giants, the extreme multihulls fight for supremacy. The Ultime class was created back in 2010 the giants return in 2014 for the historic tenth edition of the legendary solo Transatlantic from Saint Malo to Guadeloupe. Racing the Ultimes is one of the most pure human challenges in the race.

Credit : Th Martinez

#TJV2013 / Edmond de Rothschild first to Itajai ! [the 5 acts]

The seventy foot MOD70 trimaran Edmond de Rothschild, sailed by French duo Sebastien Josse and Charles Caudrelier broke the finish line of the 5450 miles Transat Jacques Vabre race this afternoon at 15hrs 03mins 57s local time (17h 03m 57h UTC GMT) to take overall line honours and win the MOD70 class.

credit : JM liot / TJV / DPPI

Edmond de Rothschild and Macif take line honours in the Artemis Challenge (ITW)

The seventh edition of the Artemis Challenge at Aberdeen Asset Management Cowes Week this year undoubtedly boasts its most prestigious line-up of offshore racing superstars – François Gabart, Michel Desjoyeaux, Alex Thomson, Dee Caffari, Vincent Riou, Jean Le Cam, Seb Josse, Brian Thompson, Sidney Gavignet – to name a few. The fleet of two huge multihulls and six IMOCA 60 monohulls today raced in The Solent in a tightly fought battle to claim their share of the £10,000 charity prize fund.

Credit : Macif

ExSS / The Wave Muscat take Act and season 2012, Mc Millan "over the moon" (Video)

The most closely contested finish ever in the six-year history of the Extreme Sailing Series, today saw The Wave, Muscat clinch the final Act victory in Rio de Janeiro by the smallest of margins – just 0.2 points ahead of the French Groupe Edmond de Rothschild. Comfortable going into the final double points race of his Series victory, winning the Act was the challenge and an ecstatic and somewhat shell-shocked McMillan was almost speechless after racing. 

Credit : Lloyd Image

Extreme Sailing Series / In two weeks, the final battle of 2012 in Brazil

In just two weeks the Extreme 40s will be heading into the final battle of 2012 in the spectacular city of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The stakes are high with four teams capable of lifting the 2012 Extreme Sailing Series overall trophy – two Omani, one French and one Austrian. None of them want to go home empty handed and with 15 points up for grabs in the final Act, the podium is wide open.

Credit: Roy Riley / Lloyd Images

Extreme Sailing Series / French victory in Nice for Edmond de Rothshchild

The French team Groupe Edmond de Rothschild ended the day where they started it – at the top of the Act 7 leaderboard in Nice with a win in the penultimate Act of the year on home soil. Spurred on by the cheers of support from an estimated 27,000 strong local crowd over the three days of racing, Pierre Pennec led his men to an impressive four race wins on the final day and with it secured third place on the overall Series leaderboard as the fleet heads to the 2012 finale in Rio de Janeiro.

Credit : Lloyd Images

ExSS / ‘Severe damage’ to Series leader The Wave, Muscat who are in a race against the clock to get back on

It was a full pressure day at the Extreme Sailing Series in Nice, France, as the gusty conditions, short courses and reaching starts tested some of the world’s best sailors to their limits – including current Series leader Leigh McMillan whose team The Wave, Muscat found themselves limping back to port after a collision on the start line in the final race of the day with Alinghi and Red Bull Sailing Team. The crash, which could be heard by the gathering spectators on shore at the Promenade des Anglais, also left the Austrians out of racing and both teams have a long night of repairs ahead to be back on the water tomorrow.

Crédit : lloyd Images

MOD70 / Michel Desjoyeaux and Foncia return to top of European Tour Leaderboard

They lead out of Cascais yesterday at the very start of the 213 miles Leg 3 of the MOD70 European Tour and this afternoon finished first across the Cascais finish line at 16hrs 07mins 44secs local time (UTC/GMT+1) this afternoon. In so doing Michel Desjoyeaux and his crew of FONCIA collected the maximum points on offer for the third stage, 3 bonus points for the start prologue and 12 points for winning the third of the five offshore stages of this MOD70 European Tour.

Credit : R Pinto/MOD

MOD70 / Musandam-Oman Sail wins Cascais City Race Series (video)

Sidney Gavignet's multinational crew of Omanis, French and British won the MOD70 European Tour Cascais City Race series today in style, just 2 points ahead of Spindrift Racing who continue to lead the European Tour overall.

Credit : R.Pinto/MOD S.A.

MOD70 / Spindrift racing won Leg 2, Oman Sail "was in the match"

Breaking the finish line off Cascais at 05hours 37minutes 36seconds UTC (06hrs 37mins 36secs local) this Wednesday morning Yann Guichard and the crew of Spindrift racing won the 975 miles second leg of the MOD70 European Tour from Dun Laoghaire, by Dublin, Ireland to Cascais by Lisbon in Portugal.

Credit : R.Pinto/MOD S.A.

Extreme Series / Oman Air clinch victory in Cardiff, Morgan Larson "To win here is fantastic"

The pressure mounted on the final day of Act 5 in Cardiff, and it was more than apparent out on Cardiff Bay. Leigh McMillan helming The Wave, Muscat was in the hunt for his fourth straight win, to match the Alinghi record set in 2008, and things were generally going his way until the fourth race of today. A penalty at the start of that race for infringing the leeward boats put McMillan at the back of the nine-boat fleet. In a single moment, the door opened even wider for their stable-mates Oman Air, skippered by US sailor Morgan Larson, and Austria’s Red Bull Sailing Team to get back in the frame. Two races later Oman Air went into the lead by just 2 points leaving McMillan and Hagara on equal points.

Credit : Lloyd Images

Extreme Series / Leigh McMillan leading in Cardiff :"We’ll just push to the end"

The crowds crammed into the best vantage points around Cardiff Bay today to witness Extreme 40 ‘stadium-style’ racing as Wales’ capital city proudly hosts the UK round of the Extreme Sailing Series global tour for the first time. A festival atmosphere was predominant around the Race Village neighbouring the annual Cardiff Harbour Festival. As festival-goers took a spin on the nearby helter skelter, the guest sailors were experiencing their own form of a helter skelter ride on board the Extreme 40s in the gusty, and up and down, winds on Cardiff Bay.

Credit : ExSS

Extreme Series / Cardiff Bay prepares to become Extreme Stadium

Excitement is building in the Welsh capital Cardiff ahead of the UK leg of the 2012 Extreme Sailing Series, not only amongst the locals who are eagerly anticipating the Extreme 40s Welsh debut, but also within the teams who after their last meeting more than seven weeks ago, are champing at the bit for battle to commence, as they launch into the second half of the 2012 Series.

The fleet has already raced stadium-style in Muscat, Qingdao, Istanbul and most recently on the magnificent Douro river in Porto, and one team has dominated so far. British Olympian Leigh McMillan and his team The Wave, Muscat have triumphed in all but one of the previous Acts but as McMillan mused, it is getting harder to retain an advantage, especially with three other teams – the Austrian Red Bull Sailing Team, their stablemates Oman Air, and the French on Groupe Edmond de Rothschild.

MOD70 / The European Tour comes to Dun Laoghaire, 05- 09 September

Dun Laoghaire will play host to sailing’s most exciting new global sailing championship series when the MOD70 European Tour visits from Wednesday 5th September to Sunday 9th September. Ireland has hosted most of the world’s top sailing events during 2012 and the hosting of this new series undoubtedly proves Ireland as one of the best sailing locations in the world.

Credit : MOD SA

MOD70 / Spindrift racing win the Krys Ocean Race

Yann Guichard and his five man crew crossed the finish line on Spindrift racing on Thursday July 12 at 12hrs 08m 37s UTC (14hrs 08m 37s local) to take overall victory in the inaugural KRYS OCEAN RACE transatlantic race in an elapsed time of 4 days 21 hours 08 minutes 37s, an average of 25.03 kts for this 2950 miles race course.

Credit : Th.Martinez/MOD SA

MOD70 / Ghosts x 3, Spirits Having Flown on the Krys Ocean Race

Approaching the tip of Britain the three leaders chose to hide. The rules of the KRYS OCEAN RACE offer the teams the chance to disappear from the world for nine hours.
In the middle of this afternoon, the constant transatlantic leader Spindrift racing, with less than 500 miles to the Scillies and two ‘ghosts’ in pursuit some 60 miles behind, also chose to disappear.

Credit :MOD70 FONCIA / On board/ Team Foncia