News

After the establishment of a new record between New York and Barcelona, the organisation of the first Round Spain Sailing Race, we see more and more Spanish teams appearing... 2010 has been marked by the rise of Spanish skippers in the IMOCA circuit. We need to watch this development closely with just a month to go to the start of the Barcelona World Race.

25th November 2009. Mike Golding and Javier Sanso grabbed third place in the Transat Jacques Vabre.  The sailor from Majorca obtained the best Spanish result in the nine editions of this race. Two days later, Alex Pella and Pepe Ribes took fifth place aboard W Hotels. This was just an appetizer for what was to come in 2010, which has been an exceptional year for the Spanish.

New races

The first piece of major newswas that the Spanishare now organising their own races aimed at IMOCA monohulls. Thus, in April, theFundacio Navegacio Oceanica Barcelona (FNOB) came up with a new record between New York and Barcelona. Two Spanish crews lined up for the start of the NY-BCN Transoceanic Sailing Record, Estrella Damm and W Hotels. Then, last June, eight 60-foot IMOCA boats took part in the first edition of the Round Spain Sailing Race, organised by the FNOB and the Spanish Sailing Federation. The aim of this event scheduled every two years is to develop interest in ocean racing, an area of the sport that competitions like the Volvo Ocean Race and the first edition of the Barcelona World Race have already contributed to popularising in this country with its rich maritime heritage.

A force to be reckoned with

In spite of being dominated by the French with a duel at the front between Safran and PRB, the Spanish crews were certainly a force to be reckoned with in this race. Three of them put the pressure on the leaders and were close to leg wins: Alex Pella and Pepe Ribes’s Estrella Damm (third overall), Pachi Rivero and Antonio Piris’s W-Hotels (fourth) and Iker Martinez and Xabi Fernandez’s Movistar (fifth). These were in fact three boats that took part in the last edition of the Vendée Globe, in the hands of Jean-Pierre Dick, Loick Peyron and Michel Desjoyeaux. On board their new boats, these crews improved throughout the event and proved that they were serious contenders. “We hadn’t hoped to find ourselves so well placed at the start of the race,” admitted Pepe Ribes at the end of the event, before adding, “Compared to last summer (2009 – editor’s note) in the Round Europe Race, we have clearly gained in terms of speed.”

Out in force in the Barcelona World Race

It would appear that there is still room for progress to be made by the Spanish crews. The leading figures in the circuit are taking this new competition very seriously. Particularly as they were surprised in the Douarnenez Grand Prix, when Iker Martinez and Xabi Fernandez, who were more used to sailing 49ers, finished ahead of PRB, Safran, Veolia Environnement and Brit Air. This however, does not stop Vincent Riou, the skipper of PRB expressing his pleasure at the arrival of these new competitors: “We’re pleased to see the international development of the class, as that means we can look forward to having fun in the years ahead.” The Spanish will be able to see what they are capable of against the leading specialists in the IMOCA class in the forthcoming edition of the Barcelona World Race, which begins on 31st December. The thirteen Spanish skippers taking part will want to show what they can do in this second edition of the non-stop double-handed race around the world. While waiting for the 2012-2013 Vendée Globe? Some are indeed thinking of that. It will in any case be a great challenge, as so far no Spanish sailor has ever managed to complete the non-stop solo round the world voyage.