Giancarlo Pedote : "The Vendée Globe makes you stronger."

“Each Vendée Globe is different. So I am approaching my second exactly like the first. You must not think that because you have already completed one, the next one will be any easier. I almost want to say “on the contrary”. A solo round the world race, non-stop and without assistance, is a very difficult event. You can’t know in advance what weather systems you will have to deal with and even less how it will go. You have to approach things with the utmost, constant vigilance and attention.”

“I found out that it really was quite an adventure. That it was a tough, long race, with many, many problems all along the way. The Vendée Globe is an event during which you learn a lot about everything. About yourself but also about strategy, about maneuvers, about how to approach weather systems, about how to eat and what to wear. It is a complex experience, but an experience that allows you to become stronger and stronger and therefore to progress, in all areas.”

“Certainly. A Vendée Globe is a massive experience, which inevitably has consequences and which may leave long term after-effects, but which is very rich in terms of learning. Life does the same job but in a different space-time continuum. Setting off solo, with limited resources, puts you in a certain mind set. If you are faced with a problem, it is not like in Formula 1. You cannot make a pit-stop, see a whole team of mechanics step inand then set off again after a few seconds, as if nothing had happened. On board our boats, we operate differently. You have to get used to it, know how to deal with stuff, take a step back and make the right decisions at the right time. Typically, in the event of a technical problem, you have to be able to know whether it is better to repair it straight away or whether it is better to wait so as not to risk making the situation worse. It is a sum of quite complex things. "

"Clearly! Even before crossing the finish line of my first Vendée Globe four years ago, I was already thinking about my second. I'm leaving with a big ambition. This race is really something extraordinary. Every morning at home when I get up, I often tell myself that I have an incredible chance to be able to take part. Sailing around the world in a boat, and even more so solo, is truly a unique experience. An experience that leaves a lasting impression that stays with you for your whole life. So you have to make the most of it."

"It's difficult for me to answer this question because I can't imagine what it's like if you're not! (Laughs) However, I would like to point out that just because you studied philosophy doesn't necessarily mean you're a philosopher! For my part, I learned to be calm. Some people are not able to stay locked up alone in a room for more than five minutes. When you are doing a Vendée Globe, it is better that you can! (Laughs) I like to experiment with things and the fact that I am doing this type of event is not by chance. It is an opportunity that I give myself an opportunity for reflection, convening with myself. However competition comes first and foremost. I thrive in sport. I like to achieve good results but also, more simply, to improve in everything I do. I try to use my previous experiences to improve in all the activities I practice.

"I made radical choices that I do not regret. The bow, which we chose to modify, is today one of the most radical in the fleet and I believe in it a lot. I am also very happy to have installed foils. This has undoubtedly allowed me to improve my performance, even if it is obviously still complicated to compete with the most recent boats. Some ergonomic choices, made by Jean-Pierre Dick at the time, are, in fact, impossible to live with. An IMOCA is a bit like a house: you can do a "refit", you can change certain things, but at a certain point you can't change everything either because it becomes more expensive than building something new. On certain points, I was therefore forced to make concessions and learn to live with it."

"My determination and my concentration. I am someone who can stay focused for 80 days in a row, without dropping my guard, especially during a race like the Vendée Globe because it is a race in which I am totally committed, and right down to my fingernails. For example, I can decide not to do a maneuver but certainly not to do it haphazardly.”

"Hearing that big "bang" that means a collision with something floating and that can end the race in a flash, in just a few seconds. It's obviously unpredictable since it's your destiny, but that's what I think is the hardest part of a race like this."

"It's an image of the Big South, with the albatrosses flying behind the boat and that cold air that makes you feel like you're in the mountains on a chairlift! (Laughs)"

"That's a very complicated question. I love the moment when I see my family after a race. The reunions are always very emotional." 

"There is no more exhilarating moment on board than when it's flying at 30 knots on flat seas!"

"One: to have a great time with myself. Two: to complete it with an even better result than last time."

"What I like to every day when I can is exert myself. I run, swim, ski, freedive, surf, golf... basically, all the fun you can have! (Laughs)"

"I have a lot of lucky charms. In total, I have about ten, including small objects that have travelled with me since my years on the Mini 6.50 and things that my children give me."