Sailing has a long history in the Olympic Games. Events were planned for the Athens Games in 1896, but were not held because of the weather. But four years later, the first competitions took place at the Olympic Games in Paris. That was 124 years ago, 89 years before the first Vendée Globe. Sailing has progressively evolved and recently included foils. It has become a key sport, to the point that an ocean racing event was once envisaged for Paris 2024. Before the competitions get underway in Marseilles, the Vendée Globe team caught up with Paul Meilhat to understand the link between Olympic sailing and ocean racing.
In 2024, the sailing categories selected for the Games are :
Paul, can you tell us about your early sailing days ?
I started out on a cruising boat with my parents. Then, in the Paris region in Optimist, from the age of 12. I continued in laser until the end of secondary school, then I was detected by the Pôle France in La Rochelle when I was 18. In 2004, our clubs sent the ‘2008 potentials’ to Athens for the Games as part of a sports delegation, and I still have incredible memories of that! I was there for Faustine's gold medal (Faustine Merret, windsurfing medallist). After that, I prepared for the 2008 Beijing Olympics in the 49ers. I was still studying for a degree in sports in Paris, but I was training every week. I finally got the equivalent of a Master's degree (over 8 years) by combining my training and international competitions.
During those years, were you dreaming of nothing but the Games ?
I was dreaming of the Games, but at the same time... Let's just say that with my team-mates, we were winning competitions like the French championships, we were doing well at the European championships, but behind that, we were plateauing a bit. We didn't have enough time or resources... We couldn't get past the stage of giving 100%.
What made you switch to ocean racing ?
In ocean racing, it's not just about the sport, there's a whole world in which you're immersed. There's a much more ‘passionate’ side to it. You can do Olympic sailing like you do the 100 metres or any other sport, without necessarily being a sailor or loving the sea. You need to have the right sensations, have fun winning... Because generally speaking, their stuff only lasts 20 minutes on the water (laughs)! It's extremely hard, and physical preparation is essential. Some disciplines are very cardio intensive, it's almost like a Tour de France by bike!
During all my years in Olympic sailing, the open sea continued to make me dream. Maybe that's another reason why I didn't make the breakthrough, my mind was a bit elsewhere. I was doing transmanches, Tourduf (Tour of Finistère), Tour de France sailing race... I was doing a lot of habitable sailing on the side. And then when I finished my studies, dinghy sailing wasn't making me any money, quite the opposite (laughs). I became a trainer, but in reality I was having more fun ocean racing. I started out in the Figaro... and that was a real struggle for two years! But in ocean racing you can set up great projects even without a lot of funding, because adventure is part of the sport. You can tell your own story and you have lots of different ways of achieving the result, and that's what I like!
Is it easy to move from Olympic sailing to ocean racing ?
Someone who does Olympic sailing doesn't necessarily have a reason to go offshore racing, even if they're talented, you just have to have the desire! In ocean racing, you have to be a bit average everywhere. In the Olympics, if you're average everywhere, you'll never stand out from the crowd. There are plenty of examples of talented people in the Olympics who didn't make it in ocean racing. A lot of ocean racers come from the Olympics, but often they weren't the best! I did dinghy sailing with François Gabart, but he didn't win the world championships (laughs)!
What do your years of dinghy sailing bring you today ?
In ocean racing, you put a lot of energy into setting up and managing projects. Olympic sailing brings method and rigour when you're out on the water: the ability to want to go fast, down to the smallest detail. I think I've learnt a lot from that, because it's not something I'm born with. What I like is ocean racing as a whole. I'm not a perfectionist, I'm not overly fussy, but my years of light sailing have taught me a lot about that. It brings with it a sense of racing, of being a pure competitor. You need to have the ‘killer’ side in ocean racing too! And my years in the Figaro have enabled me to continue that learning process.
Can you tell us about the 2024 athletes ?
There are new practices, with foils in particular. They've gone through the same transition as us! We even introduced foils before them, which is quite incredible. In the slightly older series, there are only people I know. Camille Lecointre, I did Optimist with her when I was 12! Jérémie Mion and I were born in the same town of 3,000 inhabitants in the Paris region, and we went to the same school! Jean-Baptiste Bernaz and I did laser sailing together, as did Sarah Steyaert, and we trained at the centre in La Rochelle. There's also Charline, who was also at this centre. They had this capacity to work hard that I would never have had, they never gave up! Jean-Baptiste is the same, he put 20 years of hard work into winning a world champion title, just like Charline with her gold and silver medals... I don't know if there are any examples like that in ocean racing, where progress has been made over so many years. And then there's the new generation, who I've only just come across, because they're 20 years younger than me!
What are your medal predictions for France ?
It's the first time that there have been so many good results, in series that France hasn't dominated before. In windsurfing, kitesurfing and 470, we've always been good, but in laser and 49ers it's quite new. We've won two world championship titles, which is a first in history. We could beat the number of medals at these Games!
What do you think about the idea of integrating ocean racing into the Olympic disciplines ?
I think it would be a good thing. In many other sports represented at the Games, you have very different disciplines, so why shouldn't sailing have its diversity? I think it's important that the disciplines are representative of the practices, which is why I'm really pleased that kite foiling is now an Olympic discipline. When you see the number of wingfoils on the beaches, I think it should be in the Olympics in 2028!
