The Route du Rhum should start on November 9, three days late. The famous single-handed transatlantic race has linked Saint-Malo in Brittany to Pointe-à-Pitre in Guadeloupe every four years since 1978. With 138 boats at the start, this edition is that of all records and on the pontoons of the Corsair City, the spectators are, every day, more numerous. Thomas de Saint Leger is a sports journalist at RFI, in this episode, he recounts the popular enthusiasm and the contradictions of this 12th edition.
In this episode of News cookies, Thomas de Saint-Leger describes the atmosphere that has prevailed for several weeks in Saint-Malo: “ It is very difficult to circulate in the city and around the pontoons as there are so many people. Lots of noise too, constant concerts and flowing rum “. A situation which this year has aroused a lot of criticism, in particular from Saint-Malo residents who denounce the noise pollution. Others deplore the fact that the start of this race is more like a commercial event.
The environmental repercussions are also not spared, on the spectator side: “ Many take their car to get to Saint-Malo, but also to see the start on sites that are protected and fragile. There are also all those who will be at sea on accompanying boats, motor boats, and all this pollutes “.
On the side of the skippers, The question is validexplains Thomas, whether sailing is still a green sport. Obviously, the boats move forward thanks to the wind, but we must not forget that most of them are built with highly polluting materials, plastic or carbon. “.
At the time of the ecological challenge, some skippers have made the choice of commitment. ” It’s the case, continues Thomas, of Fabrice Amedeo, who aboard his boat took sensors that will allow him, throughout the course, to take readings and transmit them to scientists and this mini laboratory has a weight so this is necessarily done to the detriment of the race “.
Some sailors believe that we should go even further and perhaps review the offshore racing model. ” I assistedsays Thomas, at the christening of the boat We explore, by Roland Jourdain. He won the Route du Rhum twice and for this edition, his catamaran has the particularity of being built with 50% flax fiber, therefore being less polluting in its construction. “. But proof that there is still a long way to go: “ Roland Jourdain told me an anecdote. Before departure, the sailors (there are 138 of them) have a series of briefings on safety, the weather and at the end of one of them, a meeting on the environment was planned and there they were more than ten “.
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