Onboard the IMOCA 60 Groupe Apicil, skippers: Damien Seguin and Yoann Richomme during the 48 hours race Defi Azimut.
The Défi Azimut is an atypical event in the offshore race world. It’s the meeting between the IMOCA class which gathers together the skippers of the Vendée Globe and the Lorient-based company Azimut. It also aims to combine performance, innovation and strategy. It combines the best level of sailing competition with a lot of friendliness.
With just over a month to go to the start of the Transat Jacques Vabre, the event was a test for many of the boats, whether they were old or new, foilers or not. There was a lot to see at every level and the weather conditions were ideal.
Out of the twenty boats ranked at the finish, there were 12 foilers and 8 non-foilers, three of which made it to the top ten.
Rankings for the 48-hour race
1. Charal (Beyou-Pratt): 1d 18h 43 mins 46s (foils)
2. PRB (Escoffier-Lunven): 1d 20h 08 mins 52s (foils)
3. 11th Hour (Enright-Bidegorry): 1d 20h 45 mins 47s (foils)
4. Maitre CoQ IV (Bestaven-Jourdain): 1d 21h 19 mins 08s (foils)
5. Groupe Apicil (Seguin-Richomme): 1d 22h 11 mins 26s (daggerboards)
6. Banque Populaire X (Cremer-Le Cleac’h): 1d 22h 16 mins 51s (daggerboards)
7. Initiatives Cœur (Davies-Meilhat): 1d 22h 18 mins 31s (foils)
8. MACSF (Joschke-Lagraviere): 1d 23h 42 mins 27s (foils)
9. V&B Mayenne (Sorel-Le Brec): 2d 00h 14 mins 48s (daggerboards)
10. Bureau Vallee 2 (Burton-Beaudart): 2d 00h 20 mins 54s (foils)
Photo assignment for the Groupe APICIL
https://www.groupe-apicil.com/nos-engagements/sponsoring-voile/
Yves Parlier is a French sailor. He is very well known in the offshore sailing world and generally in France, where he was elected France’s top sports personality in 2002. Nicknamed “The extra-terrestrial” for his amazing exploits and capabilities.Yves Parlier is in the same mould as Eric Tabarly, a visionary skipper who plays an active role in the development of top level sailing. He is behind many new and effective solutions in fields as varied as naval architecture, the use of composite materials or the perfecting of systems to aid navigation. In 2014 he launched Beyond the Sea to develop ways of using very large kites for marine propulsion. The aim, of course, is to save energy.
Photo assignment for Voiles et Voiliers.
Damen Shiprepair Dunkerque, part of Damen Shipyards Group since 2012, is the only major ship repair yard on the north-east coast of France.
Located in the beautiful Bay of Arcachon since 1897, Couach Yachts is a French Shipyard.
Ferry / Passenger Ship Paglia Orba at the Chantier Naval de Marseille.
Photo assignment for the Fédération Française de Voile.
Photo assignment for the GICAN. 
