A history-making second place for Francesca Clapcich and Will Harris onboard 11th Hour Racing in the Transat Café L’OR
Italian-American offshore sailor Francesca Clapcich and co-skipper Will Harris (GBR) onboard 11th Hour Racing have taken second place in the notoriously challenging Transat Café L’OR double-handed race across the Atlantic from Le Havre, France to Martinique in the Caribbean. The duo crossed the finish line just off Fort-de-France at 11:02:46 local time [15:02:46 UTC], after 12 days, 1 hour, 32 minutes, and 46 seconds of racing, 5 hours and 47 minutes behind IMOCA Class winners, Charal.
It’s a history-making result for Team Francesca Clapcich Powered by 11th Hour Racing. Clapcich is the first American woman to compete in the Transat Café L’OR, it’s the best result in 20 years for a woman in the IMOCA Class since Dame Ellen MacArthur also came second in 2005, and it’s the best result for a non-French IMOCA pairing since 2011.
Clapcich and Harris were consistently in the top four, taking the lead of the 18-strong fleet as they headed towards the Canary Islands. After they left the archipelago to their right, turned west and picked up the trade winds, they lost the lead, but fought hard to keep up with Charal and eventual third place finishers MACIF Santé Prévoyance, moving into second place with just 400 nautical miles to go to the finish.
Clapcich and Harris sailed 5,503.49 nautical miles [6,333 miles | 10,192 kilometers] at an average speed of 19.01 knots [22mph | 35kmph].
It was the third time this year that the international duo had sailed together this year after after competing in the Course des Caps and The Ocean Race Europe on the same IMOCA, which was then owned by Team Malizia.
The Transat Café L’OR was the first race for Team Francesca Clapcich Powered by 11th Hour Racing in the long build-up to the 2028 Vendée Globe – a solo, non-stop circumnavigation. For the next three years Clapcich will compete in the IMOCA Globe Series – a collection of short-handed and crewed races – to gain points to qualify for the notoriously challenging race around the world.
