Les Sables-d'Olonne welcomes the McIntyre Golden Globe Race fleet as the final countdown begins
by Golden Globe Race 21 Aug 16:26 BST
6 September 2026
2026 McIntyre Golden Globe Race fleet assembled at Port Olona in Les Sables-d'Olonne, dressed with race and partner flags ahead of the Official Public Welcome on 22 August and the race start on 6 September © Arzu Beskardes / GGR2026
The public is invited to meet 16 skippers and view their classic yachts from 22 August, following Damien Guillou's SITraN Challenge victory and the fleet's first multi-boat GGR Live Window test.
Official Public Welcome: Saturday, 22 August 2026 at 14:30, GGR Pavilion, Place Vendée Globe, Port Olona. Open to everyone; no pass required.
Key points
- Mayor Nicolas Chénéchaud will officially welcome the 16 remaining McIntyre GGR skippers at 14:30 on Saturday, 22 August. The public marina pontoon and GGR Pavilion will be open daily from 10:00 to 19:00.
- French skipper Damien Guillou won the SITraN Challenge Prologue aboard the Rustler 36 Solarem, ahead of Henry Wootton's Cape George 36 Privateer and Andrea Lodolo's Rustler 36 BiBi.
- Seven yachts transmitted through the one-way GGR Live Window during the prologue. Guillou has now joined the programme, bringing the 2026 race total to eight participating skippers.
- American-Irish skipper Colm Walker has withdrawn from the 2026 race after an approximately 8,000-nautical-mile passage. He plans to return in 2030, while his Tayana 37 Mo Chuisle remains on display at the marina.
The 2026 McIntyre Golden Globe Race enters its final countdown on Saturday, 22 August, when Mayor Nicolas Chénéchaud officially welcomes the 16 remaining skippers at the GGR Pavilion at 14:30.
Everyone is invited, and no special pass is required. Visitors can enter the public area of the Vendée Globe Marina pontoon to see the race yachts at close quarters and meet the sailors as they complete their final preparations. The GGR Pavilion will open daily from 10:00 to 19:00, presenting the history of the Golden Globe Race, the sailors and boats of the 2026 edition, and the extraordinary challenge ahead.
This is not a conventional boat show but a working marina in full pre-race mode. Equipment is being tested, provisions stowed and final jobs completed before the fleet departs. The 16 sailors are preparing to race more than 28,000 nautical miles solo, non-stop and without outside assistance, navigating with sextants and paper charts aboard traditional long-keel yachts in the spirit of the original 1968 Sunday Times Golden Globe Race.
Damien Guillou wins the SITraN Challenge Prologue
The public welcome follows the successful completion of the three-day SITraN Challenge Prologue, the fleet's final extended offshore systems test before the round-the-world race. The event also supported the Sheffield Institute for Translational Neuroscience (SITraN) and its research into conditions including motor neurone disease, Parkinson's disease, dementia, stroke and multiple sclerosis.
A light-weather start was followed by a northerly breeze that never fully established. Winds retained a westerly component, producing short, choppy conditions during the first 24 hours. Although uncomfortable at times, the conditions remained manageable and gave crews a valuable opportunity to test satellite communications, HF radios, trackers, windvane self-steering systems and emergency procedures.
French skipper Damien Guillou brought the Rustler 36 Solarem home in first place. British skipper Henry Wootton finished second aboard the Cape George 36 Privateer, with Italian skipper Andrea Lodolo third aboard the Rustler 36 BiBi.
Check out the video of Damien Guillou’s winning arrival aboard Solarem at Les Sables-d’Olonne, securing first place in the SITraN Challenge Prologue!
Waypoint confusion - but no protests and no penalties
The prologue also delivered a useful reminder that precision matters at sea. Seven boats did not complete a technically valid rounding of one virtual waypoint. The specified latitude was 46°30'N, equivalent to 46.500°N in decimal degrees. Some navigators entered 46.30°N instead - 46°18'N, approximately 12 nautical miles farther south - while others passed on the wrong side of the required position, one by as little as 25 metres.
The errors were readily acknowledged on the dock, in several cases with a smile. No competitor lodged a protest, and because the SITraN Challenge was a fun training and systems-check event, the organisers decided that no penalties would be applied. The finishing order therefore stands: Guillou first, Wootton second and Lodolo third.
GGR Live Window completes first multi-boat offshore test
Seven yachts transmitted through the new GGR Live Window during the prologue, giving followers an early look at the live coverage planned throughout the round-the-world race.
Developed with Swedish technology partner TriPeak, the purpose-built system uses Starlink satellite connectivity to send live video, selected boat data and other information ashore while remaining strictly one-way. No messages, weather information, internet data or navigational assistance can be sent back to the skipper.
The offshore shakedown revealed expected commissioning issues, including intermittent audio and camera glitches and some operator errors. TriPeak nevertheless collected valuable operational data, and the overall trial was successful. Testing and software refinements will continue while the yachts are alongside, with the system scheduled to be fully operational for the start.
Damien Guillou has now confirmed that Solarem will participate in the GGR Live Window during the race, bringing the total number of participating skippers to eight.
Colm Walker withdraws from the 2026 race
American-Irish skipper Colm Walker reached Les Sables-d'Olonne on 17 August aboard his Tayana 37 Mo Chuisle after an extraordinary passage of approximately 8,000 nautical miles from the west coast of the United States, through the Panama Canal and across the Atlantic.
After arriving, Walker assessed a growing list of problems aboard the yacht, including numerous deck leaks and substantially more repair work than could reasonably be completed before the 6 September departure. He has therefore withdrawn from the 2026 McIntyre Golden Globe Race and intends to prepare for the 2030 edition.
His yacht, Mo Chuisle, will remain at the GGR Marina and can be viewed alongside the rest of the fleet.
Final inspections and preparations begin
Every yacht will now undergo detailed safety and equipment inspections. The official programme on 26 and 27 August includes checks of safety and emergency gear, communications, rigging, navigation equipment and compliance with the race's traditional-technology rules.
Several issues have already emerged during the final preparation period, including the failure of long-range HF/SSB radios aboard two yachts. Both units are being replaced. These are precisely the weaknesses the prologue and inspection period are designed to reveal before the boats head into the Southern Ocean.
Despite the inevitable last-minute jobs, the fleet is generally well prepared and the mood around the marina remains notably calm.
The Parade of Sail begins at 14:00 on Sunday, 6 September. From 14:30, the McIntyre GGR yachts will leave the Vendée Globe Marina one by one at two-minute intervals, heading down the famous Les Sables-d'Olonne channel before setting sail for Cape Horn - and, ultimately, back to Les Sables-d'Olonne.