With a wind speed recorded at over 30 knots, the first elimination race of the Offshore Double Handed World Championship produced a high-speed battle in full on conditions. Eleven teams started the Département du Morbihan Race - Elimination Race One, which was won by Charlotte Yven & Lois Berrehar (FRA). The top five teams will be awarded a place in the Offshore Double Handed World Championship Final to be held on 29 September.
The race, which covered approximately 82NM, was a test of skill and endurance for the participating teams. Charlotte Yven & Lois Berrehar (FRA) finished the race in an elapsed time of 10 Hrs 40 Min 45 Secs, winning by over 40 minutes from Federico Waksman & Justina Pacheco (URU). Just six minutes after the Uruguayan team, Jonas Gerckens & Djemila Tassin (BEL) crossed the finish line to take third. Maggie Adamson & Cal Finlayson (GBR) was fourth. A thrilling battle for fifth, the 'hot seat' for the Offshore Double Handed World Championship Final, was taken by Benjamin Daniel & Sarah Nicholson (CAN). Agonisingly close to the top five was Barbara Karpinska & Kevin Morgan (USA) and Gerasimos Petratos Evangelia Delidou (GRE).
The Race
The early leader in the race was Karpinska & Morgan (USA), who made a big gain taking an inshore route. However after passing the lighthouse at the Glénan islands, Yven & Berrehar (FRA) and Gerckens & Tassin (BEL) found another gear to take up the lead. About five miles from the top mark at Cap Caval, Karpinska & Morgan (USA) took a tack north and Waksman & Pacheco (URU) carried on the same tack, moving into third place.
The French and Belgian teams made Cap Caval virtually side by side, the breeze was building and the sea state was approaching three metres. Both teams opted to hoist the gennaker not the spinnaker and set off for a wild reach, blasting along with water cascading down the deck. Later on in the downwind sleigh ride, with spinnakers flying, the leading boats were hammering along.
"We saw 32 knots of wind and a top boat speed of 19 knots," commented Lois Berrehar. "We used the small spinnaker and we were happy with that, the risk was smaller than the reward." Charlotte Yven added: "Our first goal was to familiarise ourselves with the boat and our competitors. As always, we try to do the best preparation and understand the weather conditions. After that, we try to find the way to make the boat faster, so we look at different settings and modes. This race was very good preparation for the final."
Gerckens & Tassin (BEL) were flying along challenging the French team for the lead, but a problem with the spinnaker sheet forced them to take down their kite. "Our goal at the start was simple; make the top five, so we are happy" commented Jonas Gerckens. "It was a shame that we had a problem, but it was good to line up against Charlotte and Lois, they are one of the favourite teams for the world championship and our speed looked good against them."
The fifth team to qualify for the final, was Ben Daniel & Sarah Nicholson (CAN). This was the first time the pair had raced together and although both are Canadians, they live 4000 miles apart on the East and West Coast of Canada. "Our goal was to make the final, so we are really happy with the result," commented Sarah Nicholson. "We had a game plan to stay on the left as the forecast was for a favourable shift. At first, the plan didn't work and we were looking at the transoms of quite a few competitors but by the Glénan islands, the plan was working. We had overstood a bit but coming in with the Code Zero with the scow bow was quick."
"After Cap Caval, the British team ahead of us started to pull away, but we felt comfortable in fifth with a fair lead on sixth place," added Ben Daniel. "Like a few other competitors, we broached a few times and had problems with the spinnaker sheets. We kept looking over our shoulder but we never really felt threatened. Now we have made the final, we will have to set a new goal!"
The Teams
The Offshore Double Handed World Championship is a global event that attracts some of the best sailors in the world. The teams competing in the first elimination race represented a diverse range of sailing backgrounds and nationalities.
France 2 - Charlotte Yven & Lois Berrehar
France 2 can be considered among the favourites for the World Championship. Charlotte Yven & Loi¨s Berrehar are both members of the MACIF Skipper Programme, following in the footsteps of François Gabart, Charlie Dalin and Yoann Richomme. This year, In her second Solitaire du Figaro, Charlotte came fifth and is ranked 7th in the French Elite Offshore Racing Championship. Loi¨s Berrehar has been a MACIF Skipper since 2022, racing in six Figaros, Loi¨s was second this year and third in 2023. Loi¨s is ranked 3rd in the French Elite Offshore Racing Championship.
Belgium 2 - Djemila Tassin & Jonas Gerckens
Racing in the Sun Fast 30 OD, Djemila Tassin & Jonas Gerckens were in fine form for this year's Dhream Cup coming third in a windy race. Djemila and Jonas have plans to race around the world in 2025 with an entry in the Globe40 Race.
Great Britain 1 - Maggie Adamson & Cal Finlayson
Scottish pair Maggie Adamson & Cal Finlayson are normally rivals in different two-handed teams. Maggie has raced thousands of miles with Gavin Howe's Sun Fast 3600 Tigris, winning the doublehanded class in the 2024 RORC Transatlantic Race. Cal Finlayson races on a rival Sun Fast 3600 Diablo owned by Nick Martin, which was third out of 400 boats for the 2024 RORC Season's Points Championship. Maggie and Cal have raced together before, coming third in the 2023 Nastro Rosa Tour.
New Zealand 2 - Aaron Hume-Merry & Anna Merchant
Aaron Hume-Merry & Anna Merchant have amassed over 6000 miles racing together two-handed over the last six years. Aaron represented New Zealand in the ILCA 7 and was included in Yachting New Zealand's programme campaigning for the Olympics in the 49er class. Anna is a product of the highly regarded RNZYS youth training programme, she competed in her first offshore event at 17 and has podiumed at two World Match Racing Championships.
Uruguay - Federico Waksman & Justina Pacheco
Federico has been travelling the world working on sailing yachts for a number of years before deciding to campaign a Mini Transat 6.50. Winning the 2023 Mini Transat, Frederico became first South American to do so and has now set his sights on the Solitaire du Figaro. Justina Pacheco won national titles as a youth in Uruguay.
India - Sweta Shervegar & Atool Sinha
Atool is from Mumbai and has competed at the top level in match racing in India and the Far East. Sweta has competed at top level in the 470 and 49er FX Classes including runner up in 2018 Asian Games in the 49er. Atool is Captain in the Indian Armed Forces.
Japan - Yoshihiko Murase & Naho Takahara
Murase competed in the 1991 and 1995 Melbourne to Osaka two-handed race and contested six consecutive Transpacific Yacht Races, as well as three Sydney Hobarts as skipper of his 54ft racing yacht. Naho Takahara is a new Mini Transat sailor and aims to become the first Japanese woman, and the youngest Japanese person, to complete the solo transatlantic crossing.
Canada - Sarah Nicholson & Ben Daniel
Ben and Sarah are a new double-handed team but have thousands of offshore miles between them. Ben Daniel is a 27 year old sailor from British Columbia and has been racing offshore since he was 15. Sarah Nicholson is a 25 year old New Brunswick sailor with a passion for offshore racing. Alongside her current engineering role at North Technology Group, Sarah has been racing many offshore miles in recent years including skipper for the Newport to Bermuda Race.
Netherlands 2 - Tim Lemeer & Lisa Vos
The Dutch team have ties with the Magenta Project, an award-winning global charity, created to build a sustainable network and programme for more equity and inclusion for women in sailing. Tim is on the Board of the Magenta Project and former Rear Commodore of Scheveningen YC. Lisa Vos is a Magenta Mentee who was part of The Ocean Race. In 2023, Lisa became a sailor and logistics manager for VO65 Team Jajo.
Greece - Gerasimos Petratos & Evi Delidou
From Greece sail Gerasimos Petratos & Evi Delidou race their Dehler 30 Aether doublehanded which is a similar hi-tech design to the Sun Fast 30, the pair won the Doublehanded class at this year's Aegean 600.
USA1 - Barbara Karpinski & Kevin Morgan
Barbara Karpinski has completed in just about all the major offshore races in the western hemisphere and has been a key figure in promoting the offshore double handed discipline since the movement began in the United States.
What's Next?
The next elimination race, the Région Bretagne Race, is scheduled for Thursday, 26 September. The top five teams from each of the elimination races will qualify for the final, which takes place on Sunday, 29 September. The race is sure to be a thrilling spectacle as the teams battle for a chance to be crowned the Offshore Double Handed World Champions.
The Offshore Double Handed World Championship is a unique event that showcases the best of double-handed sailing. The teams competing in the race are a testament to the diversity and passion of the sailing community. The race is sure to be a thrilling spectacle as the teams battle for a chance to be crowned the Offshore Double Handed World Champions.
