Monnet Update - Hes done it !!!
by Windreport 9 Jun 2000 19:28 BST
It was 11 hours 50 minutes and 36 seconds when Philippe Monnet crossed the finishing line off the island of Ushant. The skipper of UUNET now holds the record round the world against the prevailing winds and currents after 151 days, 19 hours, 54 minutes and 36 seconds and ten days less than the time set by Briton Mike Golding, the previous holder of the record.
Emotion was running high at the HQ in Brest when Philippe crossed the line. His friends, Hubert Auriol (winner of the 1992 Paris-Dakar with Philippe Monnet) and Fred Beauchêne (Atlantic crossing by sailboard) couldn’t hold back their tears. Also present in Brest, Raphaël Mezrahi, the boat’s godmother, yachtsman Hervé Laurent and a crowd of supporters.
Philippe and his monohull are expected to touch land in the mid afternoon. It’s going to be quite a party and the night will be long to celebrate the hero in style.
Homecoming for the hero of the seas
Philippe Monnet has just stepped onto dry land for the first time in 5 months. At the Moulin Blanc Marina in Brest, hundreds of people came to welcome the champion who crossed the finishing line at 11.50 local time after 151 days 19 hours 54 minutes and 36 seconds.
Immense emotionEmotions were running high among both those close to the skipper and all the anonymous well-wishers gathered to greet him, and the long moments of silence between rounds of applause testified to the general feeling : an immense fascination.
Philippe Monnet has come back from far, very far. No need to hear him speak to realise what was going through his mind. You just had to look at his big blue eyes staring out over the crowd... The skipper of the impossible resembled an extraterrestrial landing from another planet. Apart from a few kilos less and hair a little longer than when he left, there was nothing to suggest that Philippe had just spent 5 months alone at sea, rubbing shoulders with death on several occasions…
Let the party continue !But there’s no doubt, Philippe Monnet is well and truly human ! When he saw his mother, the mariner hugged her in his arms and couldn’t hold back his tears.
The circumnavigation is over but there will be no rest for the skipper this evening because a huge party is being thrown in his honour in Brest. It looks like another long night ahead…
More Information: www.70degresud.com