As the IMOCA fleet arrived in Aarhus (overnight 28-29 May), The Ocean Race was made aware that an incident took place during the stopover in Newport.
Our immediate concern has been with the safeguarding of any person who may have been impacted and we have, in this case, been assured by Team Holcim-PRB that safeguarding measures within their team are in place for this. We respect the right to privacy and have offered, and continue to offer, our full support and access to any services that might be beneficial.
No formal complaint or report has been received by The Ocean Race to date. This is primarily a matter to be dealt with by the team and the regulatory authorities for the sport of sailing. On Saturday (3 June), Kevin Escoffier stepped down as skipper of Team Holcim-PRB and will not rejoin the Race.
As a World Sailing sanctioned Major International Event, there are processes in place for how The Ocean Race should handle on and off the water incidents and we have been following those procedures along with World Sailing since we learned of the incident. World Sailing has confirmed the French Sailing Federation (FFV) is the appropriate organisation to investigate and apply sanctions (if any) in relation to this incident.
On Monday (5 June), we spoke with the FFV, who confirmed they are following their procedures to set up an investigation, including sending a report to the French Ministry of Sport. We support this initiative and are fully cooperating with the FFV.
The Ocean Race is committed to a safe environment for everyone on and off the water and will continue its work to promote inclusion in the sport of sailing.
