Romain Attanasio 14th: "On board these boats it's completely insane"

Romain Attanasio 14th: "On board these boats it's completely insane"

Photo sent from the boat Fortinet - Best Western during the Vendee Globe sailing race on January 30, 2025. (Photo by skipper Romain Attanasio)


Romain Attanasio (Fortinet-Best Western, 14th) finished with his wide, engaging smile intact. His good humour knows few limits. And today his sheer pleasure, his relief and satisfaction at sharing a warm, sunny welcome was evident. He loves to share and enjoying the channel was all part of his third successful Vendée Globe in a row..

 

Vendée Globe :
How did you enjoy the return up the channel?
 

Romain Attanasio

It's always amazing! It's so much better at the finish than at the start. At the start it's oppressive, there's the stress of leaving, that's all you think about. At the finish, what changes everything is that as soon as you cross the line, there is no more pressure. We spend three months wondering when everything is going to go wrong, when we are going to give up. And even this morning, I was still afraid of dismasting! Once the line is crossed, you finally know that nothing can happen. And that's pure happiness!
 

 
Vendée Globe :
Did you really feel a very high intensity?
 

Yes, the pressure was permanent. Every time I managed to get ahead, the others came back at me. When we sailed up the Atlantic, I found myself in calm conditions with Damien Seguin and all the boats were coming back. It was delirium! Everyone said: "Jean Le Cam is going to overtake you!" In the end, I managed to get back ahead.  I attacked like I would never have attacked with my previous boats. A foiler has nothing to do with other boats. Sometimes, I wondered why we had made the mistake of putting foils on our boats. Of course it goes fast but physically, it's unmanageable!
 

Vendée Globe :
You were one of those who seemed to know how to find the words to tell this adventure...

 

I try to tell what I'm going through. I don't have much to hide. I'm thinking of Charlie (Dalin) who is playing for victory and obviously when he has a problem, he can't say nothing. I don't have that pressure! I manage to talk about it because I have sponsors, people who follow me. If I didn't tell them what I was going through, it wouldn't work! We have to talk about our sport. And I try to say as much as possible, my strengths as well as my weaknesses!
 

Vendée Globe :
How would you describe the atmosphere on board?
 

The atmosphere, the slamming, the shocks, it's completely insane! You hurt everywhere, it's impossible. When the boat hits, your neck hurts, it crunches your teeth, it's hellish! I don't know why we put foils on these boats! But they're great, the feeling of flying... But when the sea is bad, it's really hard.
 

Vendée Globe :
You are one of the few to have finished three Vendée Globes...
 

Since the beginning of my career, I've always come across people who have really helped me. I still dismasted in September. Everyone around me was there, everyone helped me and allowed me to be there. In life you make your luck and then for a moment everything aligns. And above all because you are well supported by good people. And that allowed me to compete in three Vendée Globes!
 

Vendée Globe :
Are you ready to come back again with an even stronger boat?
 

A week ago I said no. When I arrived, I was thinking about it. And tonight I'm going to say that I want to go back! If I had a latest-generation boat, I might have been able to be in the game. But they're hard boats, I don't know if I have the physical capacity to sail them. It's another world! But inevitably, we get a taste for performance. I'll probably be seen again in four years!
 

Vendée Globe :
We heard you sing a lot too...
 

I sing French songs but I sing very badly! In my whole life, it's always been a horrible complex. I'll never sing in public but alone on my boat I do whenever I want to!
 

Here are the latest arrival estimates for the next Vendée Globe competitors. ALL TIMES UTC
(ETA : Estimated Time of Arrival)

ETA
Romain Attanasio (Fortinet - Best Western): 2nd February 2025 between 1000hrs and 1130hrs, channel entrance possible from 1525hrs

Damien Seguin (Apicil Group): 3rd February between 0400hrs and 0900hrs

Alan Roura (Hublot): 3rd February between 0800hrs and 1500hrs
Benjamin Ferré (Monnoyeur - Duo for a Job): 3rd February between 0800hrs and 1500hrs
Tanguy Le Turquais (Lazare): 3rd February between 0800hrs and 1500hrs

Isabelle Joschke (MACSF): Between 3rd February 1700hrs and 2100hrs

Jean Le Cam (Tout commence en Finistère - Armor-Lux): 4th February 2025 between 0200 and 0900hrs
Conrad Colman (MS Amlin): 4th February 2025 between 0200 and 0900hrs
Giancarlo Pedote (Prysmian): 4th February 2025 between 0200 and 0900hrs

Guirec Soudée (Freelance.com): Between 7th February 2025 1400hrs and 8th February 0100hrs

Kojiro Shiraishi (DMG Mori Global One): Between 8th and 9th February 2025
Violette Dorange (Devenir): Between 8th and 9th February 2025
Louis Duc (Fives Group - Lantana Environnement): Between 8th and 9th February 2025

Sébastien Marsset (Foussier): 9th February 2025

Antoine Cornic (Human Immobilier) : Between 14th and 15th February 2025

Oliver Heer (TUT GUT.) : Between 16th and 17th February 2025
Jingkun Xu (Singchain Team Haikou) : Between 16th and 17th February 2025

Manuel Cousin (Coup de pouce) : Between 23rd and 25th February 2025
Fabrice Amedeo (Nexans - Wewise) : Between 23rd and 25th February 2025

Denis Van Weynbergh (D'Ieteren Group) : Between 25th and 27th February 2025

Out of race:
Yannick Bestaven (Maitre Coq V): 2nd February 2025 between 1000hrs and 1130hrs
Eric Bellion (Stand As One): Between 14th and 15th February 2025

These ETAs are drawn up by the Race Direction and will be updated daily.