Press release
The boats that lined up on Saturday June 17th for the start of the Bol d'Or Mirabaud presented by Corum definitely found themselves with plenty of wind in their sails for this 73rd edition. The starting gun was fired at 10 am and the 477 competing teams that set off on the race with their spinnakers hoisted were a truly magnificent and colorful sight to behold for sailing enthusiasts.
VIDEOS OF THE BOL D'OR
The race start proved particularly eventful for the D35 Okalys-Corum when a crew member fell overboard just after the boat crossed the starting line. Still somewhat shaken by his fall, Damien Cardenoso, said after the race: “It's pretty scary to find yourself alone in the water with almost 500 boats rushing towards you.” Loïck Peyron, skipper of the orange multihull and Corum ambassador, handled the rescue operation with consummate skill and later explained: “We absolutely had to succeed in our maneuver, since we would have been forced to withdraw from the competition if a security boat had had to intervene. Sailing is a team sport and each team member plays an important role on board. Damien was very brave to continue the race with his injured ankle.”
Commenting live on this unfortunate accident from his vantage point aboard the Simplon, Ben Ainslie, brand ambassador and guest of honor said: “It's a long race and Loïck Peyron is excellent over lengthy periods. Despite losing time because of the incident, the team can still work its way back into the race.” The second part of the regatta proved the triple Olympic medal-winner right. While still in 7th position at the turning point in Le Bouveret, the D35 Okalys-Corum made up considerable ground and made the fastest return leg of the entire fleet thanks to the wise tactical choices made by Eric Monnin to finish in fourth place just six minutes behind Alinghi, winner of the Bol d'Or Mirabaud presented by Corum. With Ernesto Bertarelli at the helm, Alinghi thereby set a new record in the D35 category, having covered the 123 km in 6 hours and 25 minutes.
Nicolas Grange, owner of the D35 Okalys-Corum, said of this tough and competitive edition: “We've finished just short of the podium and just a few minutes from the winners. We can't help feeling a tinge of regret, but we sailed really well, and considering the difficulties we encountered at the start, it's a really great result.”
A watch from the Admiral's Cup Seafender 48 Chrono Bol d'Or Mirabaud limited edition, specially created by the brand in honor of the brand's partnership with the event, was presented on Sunday evening to the winner of the Bol d'Or – Alinghi – and another to the Bol de Vermeil winner, Syz & Co.
Corum CEO Antonio Calce said: “Sailing is a magnificent sport and Corum is determined to maintain and strengthen its presence in this world. We have called upon a specialist in the field to help guide our future choices and appointed Loïck Peyron as Advisor for all the brand's sailing sponsorship projects. This appointment demonstrates our strong attachment to sailing and the kind of direction we wish to give to our future partnerships. Loïck Peyron has once again offered us a fine demonstration of his expertise in this Bol d'Or Mirabaud presented by Corum, through his perfect handling of the incident at the start of the race. Corum is proud to be associating a man of such great talent with our company's master-watchmakers and other staff members.
