CIC Med Channel Race
It was by 10 minutes and 15 seconds, after 5 days, 23 hours, and 19 minutes of racing, that the PHARE 40 team (No. 142) of Mathieu Claveau and François Verdier claimed the Trophy for the 2nd edition of the CIC Med Channel Race.
A superb but hard-fought victory over their rival STELLA NOVA (No. 134) of Omar Naas and Louis Torreilles, who had been in the lead until last night. Leading at the entrance to Bonifacio and Menorca, the Swiss team held on until the very last miles, where a slightly more opportune strategy during the final night proved decisive. “To the Marseille team to take it.” What a race! Challenging conditions, strong strategic choices, some incredible twists and turns… and a magnificent comeback right up to the last few miles to secure this victory. Marseille had a special flavor this morning. Winning here, after such a hard-fought race, on this new boat, and with such a committed duo… it has a very special flavor,” declared Mathieu Claveau upon his arrival in Marseille.
A podium in less than an hour
STELLA NOVA finished second, 10 minutes behind PHARE40, and RDT LOGISTIC – OCEAN CONNECT (No. 168) 45 minutes behind the winner. It took no more than 45 minutes to complete the podium for this race. After six days and numerous milestones to reach in all aspects of the race between Marseille, Corsica, Sardinia, and the Balearic Islands, it proved that in this Mediterranean, with its reputation for being so difficult, changeable, and unpredictable, it was possible to complete a 1,000-mile offshore course in less than a week. Following a successful first edition, won by Ian Lipinski (recent winner of the round-the-world race), GLOBE40 (in Class40) – this successful completion of the course will be another significant step in the development of the event as a major offshore racing event in Marseille and the Mediterranean.
Intensity in all aspects of the race
AQUAMARIN (No. 135) finished in 4th position, 19 minutes behind 3rd place; FLAMINGO ROSSO (No. 155) finished 5th, 3 minutes 18 seconds behind 4th; LES AILES DE CHARLOTTE (No. 149) finished 6th, 9 minutes 37 seconds behind 5th, and less than an hour and a half behind the winner. It was a veritable parade of arrivals this afternoon in the southern harbor of Marseille, under the watchful gaze of Notre-Dame de la Garde. The women’s team of MER CONNEXION (No. 89) completed the picture later in the afternoon after a strong performance on the oldest boat in the fleet, in their first Class40 race. Only number 98, QWANZA, remains at sea, facing more unfavorable weather conditions and expected to reach Marseille this morning. All will retain a vivid memory of this Ulysses-like journey in the western Mediterranean. And this race is clearly destined to grow, just as its Norman counterpart did, starting with 10 competitors in 2010 and becoming, in 2025 with 32 boats at the starting line, the largest exclusive Class40 event since the creation of the Class40 20 years ago.
To access the crew presentations: www.med-race.com/les-equipages
To follow the race on the map (a position update every 15 minutes): www.med-race.com/suivre-la-course
Website: www.med-race.com