Tom Dolan: “Remain humble right to the wire”

Tom Dolan (Smurfit Kappa - Kingspan) wins 55th La Solitaire du Figaro Paprec Leg 2 © Alexis Courcoux

This Sunday 8 September at 2 pm local time, Tom Dolan and his fellow competitors in the Solitaire du Figaro Paprec will take the start of the third and final leg of the event.

Extended by 100 miles in relation to the initial programme, it promises to be particularly full-on, with conditions forecast to be bracing throughout.

"It's a hefty chunk of racetrack that awaits us. Seven-hundred miles is the equivalent of the Round Ireland, which is not insignificant, even though we've already sailed even longer races that that in the past. We're going to get pummelled in the English Channel, just as we did in 2022. It's fair to say that I really like it when it's a bit boisterous and I'm in a favourable position in the ranking, but I must remain humble right to the wire. It's going to very lively for four days. It'll be vital to take the time to do things properly as there's a lot to lose if we break any gear," announced the Irish sailor, who will plunge straight in at the deep end this afternoon.

"We'll start the race with a long beat as far as the Occidentale de Sein. The wind is set to be very fluky. We'll really have to make the most of the slight fluctuations and time our tacks to perfection. The ideal trajectory certainly won't be easy to find," added Tom, who is likely to have to weave his way along, skirting the coast, with precious little sleep along the way. "All in all, there is unlikely to be much downtime during this final act. The start will be all about making small gains and it'll be vital not to mess that up because it'll be all about speed over the next section of the race essentially," explained the sailor, who is poised for a very wet few days.

"We're going to spend a lot of time riveted to the helm and there's every chance that we'll never get out of our drysuits the entire time. In actual fact, I spent yesterday adding a cuddy to my boat to ensure I'm better protected," said the skipper of Smurfit Kappa - Kingspan, who's obviously hoping to hang onto his lead in the ranking and secure victory in this 55th edition.

"It'll be important to keep pace and get the sail choices right, especially between Skerries Bank (to the east of Start Point) and West Shambles (offshore of Weymouth), where we'll doubtless have to choose between the small and the large spinnaker, as well as take care with manoeuvring. I'm ready to get down to action but I'm setting sail without thinking too much about the result. My primary aim is to focus on the process. We'll see what's what at the end," concluded Tom Dolan, who currently boasts a lead of 57 minutes and 32 seconds over the second boat, which is both a lot and very little given the scale of what awaits him and his rivals.

The verdict is set to fall overnight on Wednesday through into Thursday.