Season 2024 // Renewal at the Figaro Beneteau Class
Thursday, february 1, 2024
This season, the Figaro Beneteau Class is proud to welcome around fifteen rookies at the helm of a Figaro Beneteau 3 on the circuit! Young, more experienced, enlightened amateurs, Olympians, sailors from dinghy sailing or former competitors from the Mini Class or the Ocean Fifty Class, the Figaro Beneteau circuit, known for its professionalism and for being a breeding ground for top champions, continues to attract talents in the making. Selected by major teams such as Région Bretagne – CMB or leading their own projects, with or without former Figaro sailors, these newcomers to the Class aim to enhance its reputation by participating in the French Elite Offshore Racing Championship, the Figaro Beneteau Academy program, and the special events that make up a busy 2024 calendar.
Between transmission, performance pursuit, and finding a good compromise, the motivations are varied and significant for these new entrants whom we have interviewed.
Valentin Gautier, Figaro Beneteau 3 CER:
On the Figaro circuit, it's the Tour Voile that attracts me!
I've already sailed Mini 6.50 and Class40, and I'm not sure I would have ventured into Figaro without the Tour Voile. I decided to stop sailing professionally and return to Switzerland, where I had the opportunity to work as an administrator at the CER (Regatta Training Center of Geneva).
At the Tour de France à la Voile, the CER is a regular competitor with over 40 participations since the race's inception. The Diam24 format was less appealing to us, and the Figaro allows us to take young sailors offshore and have them spend nights at sea. When it relaunched in 2023, it was a great opportunity; I wanted to try setting up an academy in Switzerland like Région Bretagne – CMB or Macif, but it required too much money. The Tour Voile is a roundabout way to do it, especially with Guillaume Rol, who will potentially try other races on the circuit. The idea of the CER is for me to skipper our Figaro Beneteau 3 at the Tour Voile and for Guillaume to be my main co-skipper. He has a good level of racing experience, and I can rely on him. In the future, if he wants and the schedule allows, he will take the helm of the boat under certain conditions for some academy races.
The medium-term goal is for the Figaro Beneteau 3 CER to participate in La Solitaire du Figaro Paprec in 2025. The Tour Voile enables our young sailors to gain the skills to enter races in the French Elite Offshore Racing Championship. Guillaume has the ability to aim for the rookie ranking, but I don't want to waste his chance this year. The academy races of the season are a good way to get acquainted with the boat. We rented a second Figaro at the beginning of the season and train with it in Lorient.
The goal for the season is to participate with two boats in the Trophée Laura Vergne and the Spi Ouest-France to select the Tour Voile crew, which will then compete in the GPEN aboard the Figaro Beneteau 3 CER to complete its training program and stay sharp. After the Tour Voile, we are considering the Fig'Armor and the National Figaro 3 in Crew.
Quentin Vlamynck, Figaro Beneteau 3 Les Étoiles Filantes:
We were at the end of our contract with Arkéma before I did the Route du Rhum – Destination Guadeloupe 2022. In search of sponsors after my second place in the Route du Café, we couldn't find enough funds and had to sell the Ocean Fifty Trimaran. We had approached Thibaut Vauchel-Camus and agreed to my presence on his Ocean Fifty project, which gave me time to think about 2024.
I had several options: an Imoca project is very expensive, and a Class40 project requires building a boat with uncertainty about qualifying in time for the next Route du Rhum. Owning a Figaro was financially more interesting. The budget isn't finalized yet, but I can sail! The goal is to race simply in terms of logistics and to challenge myself to learn the settings of a new boat. This year, I support the Les Étoiles Filantes association; it gives meaning to my sailing and shows that offshore racing isn't just about performance.
I plan to participate in almost all the races on the calendar, starting with the Solo Guy Cotten, the Spi Ouest France, the Solo Maître CoQ, and the Gascogne 45/5, which takes place in La Rochelle where I train. I would like to do all the races in the French Elite Offshore Racing Championship until La Solitaire du Figaro Paprec, have a crew for the Tour Voile. For my first season on the circuit, I want to arrive with a clean boat and show that I can achieve great things, without pretension.
Axelle Pillain:
My arrival on the Figaro Beneteau circuit is a coincidence. My work with Team Malizia, where I was responsible for performance and electronics, ended, and I had a desire for offshore sailing. After my Mini Transat 2019, I already wanted to participate in the Transat en Double 2020. I know some Figaro sailors who told me that La Solitaire du Figaro Paprec was a must! This year, I have the opportunity to go there, I have skills, some money set aside, although my season will depend on the budget I find. The Figaro Beneteau Class has the reputation of having trained the greatest sailors and crew members, and that's the goal I'm aiming for. With Malizia, I had the opportunity to do a leg of The Ocean Race; it confirmed my desire to renew the experience with my dual role as a sailor and engineer.
I met Alain Gautier, who is renting me his boat until the end of April; I would like to find the necessary funds to keep it until La Solitaire du Figaro Paprec. With Berenice Charrez, who shares the same ambitions as me, we want to help each other and sail double-handed together. The first one to secure her budget will carry her colors on Alain's boat.
This season, I will start with the Solo Guy Cotten, the Trophée Laura Vergne with Berenice, and the Solo Maître CoQ. If I can continue to rent the Figaro, I plan to do the Trophée BPGO, the Fig'Armor, and La Solitaire. The priority this year is to get to grips with the boat and aim for a rookie ranking at La Solitaire du Figaro Paprec. I take things as they come, and why not continue for a second year on the circuit.
Pier Paolo Dean:
I'm only 19, but I have the ambition to participate in the Vendée Globe 2032. I come from dinghy sailing; I trained in Marseille. I had two options to continue sailing, either in the Olympics or offshore, and with my long-term goals, I chose offshore. Between Mini 6.50 and Figaro, I preferred the professional circuit, which requires a bit more budget but will allow me to hone my skills for 4-5 years.
I reached out to a friend who works with Team Banque Populaire; he told me about a Figaro Beneteau 3 for rent. After some exchanges with Armel Le Cléac'h, I went to the shipyard, accompanied by my project manager, to see the boat. I also explained to Armel that I needed a sponsor, and a little story was created between us. He helps me when he can, which is a real asset for my entry into the circuit.
For now, my season will resemble my budget. Sponsors still struggle to come on board, but I plan to do all the races in the French Elite Offshore Racing Championship, skipping Solo Guy Cotten Concarneau or Solo Maître CoQ if I don't have enough funds. I have a rookie ranking goal for the Championship, but the first one is to do my first La Solitaire du Figaro Paprec at 19. I'm highly competitive; I'm not going just to participate.
Outside of this solo project, I want to participate in the Tour Voile and finalize my crew composed solely of young sailors. I want us to find a budget together that will be specific to the event and manage all logistics among ourselves. The GPEN will be a good way for us to prepare for this Tour Voile, but also for me to have my partners sail.
The newly declared skippers of the Figaro Beneteau Class are:
- Louise Acker (Region Bretagne – CMB Océane)
- Thomas Bled (partner not disclosed)
- Arno Biston (partner not disclosed)
- Bérénice Charrez (partner not disclosed)
- Pier Paolo Dean (partner not disclosed)
- Jacques Delcroix (partner not disclosed)
- Thomas de Dinechin (partner not disclosed)
- Jules Ducelier (Region Normandie)
- Tom Goron (partner not disclosed)
- Thierry Levayer (partner not disclosed)
- Stéphane Le Diraison (partner not disclosed)
- Paul Morvan (partner not disclosed)
- Arthur Meurice (partner not disclosed)
- Anaëlle Pattusch (partner not disclosed)
- Axelle Pillain (partner not disclosed)
- Guillaume Rol (CER)
- Adrien Simon (partner not disclosed)
- Quentin Vlamynck (Les Étoiles Filantes)
Yaël Poupon, Carlota Alonso, Tiphaine Rageneau, and Timothée Deplasse are still seeking ways to join the circuit this year, including as co-skippers.