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Two French Sailors in a 35-Foot Boat Are Set to Win Handicap Honors in the Sydney to Hobart Race

Michel Quintin and Yann Rigal posted the best handicap time in the Sydney to Hobart race despite a smaller 35-foot yacht and challenging sea conditions.

  • On Wednesday morning, Michel Quintin and Yann Rigal arrived at Constitution Dock in Hobart on their 35-foot yacht BNC after more than 93 hours at sea, overcoming tough Sydney to Hobart seas.
  • Quintin and Rigal have built their campaign over five years, with two years of targeted preparation, while their onboard provisions of spaghetti, lasagne and chicken curry went mostly uneaten.
  • Equipment problems in Bass Strait compounded nausea and near-constant steering for Quintin and Rigal, while rough early upwind conditions forced 34 of the 128 starters to retire.
  • By late afternoon, BNC held the best handicap time with only Crux left as a long-shot challenger after Crux led earlier but was delayed by a southerly breeze.
  • Overall handicap honors have in recent years been won by larger yachts, yet French Duo on 35-Foot Yacht about a third the length of supermaxi line honors winner Comanche challenge larger yachts for overall handicap honors on Sunday.
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Two French sailors in a 35-foot boat are set to win handicap honors in the Sydney to Hobart race

Two French sailors based on the Pacific island of New Caledonia — one of them a former windsurfing Olympian — have overcome tough Sydney to Hobart seas on one of the fleet’s smallest boats to all but clinch handicap honors in the annual race.

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While the first Maxis arrived in Hobart two days ago, the majority of the fleet is still sailing along the Tasmanian coast, nearing the end of this final third of the race. Two French double-handed crews currently hold the virtual lead in the IRC overall standings: Alexis Loison, partnered with Australian Jiang Lin aboard the JPK 10.30 Min River, and the duo Yann Rigal and Michel Quintin-BNC on the JPK 10.80 my::NET / LEON’s. Both boats must arr…

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Course au Large broke the news in on Monday, December 29, 2025.
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