Massive jury decision for Mini Transat

(October 20, 2021) – The international jury responsible for examining the protests from 19 racers competing in the 23rd edition of the Mini Transat EuroChef, which were filed at the end of the first leg, has awarded a time benefit for competitors which took shelter due to imprecise advice of Race Management along the 1,350 nm course between Les Sables d’Olonne and Santa Cruz de La Palma.

It was found that Race Management’s recommendations, information, or advice to seek shelter in the closest port, which were given on October 1 following the issuing of a severe weather warning regarding the zones of South Finisterre and North Finisterre, were vague and imprecise and hence not clearly comprehensible for the competitors.  As a result, it was decided that this was an inadequate action on the part of Race Management.

Therefore, the decision has been taken to award the fleet a conditional redress of 24 hours which is to be deducted from race times.

This time bonus does not involve the top four boats in the prototype ranking, nor does it affect any of the sailors who chose not to stop after the weather message was sent out by Race Management, namely Piers Copham (719 – Voiles des Anges), Melwin Fink (920 – SingForCom) and Christian Kargl (980 – All Hands On Deck), the latter having solely made a technical pit-stop following an electronics blackout.

Within this context, the podium positions for the first leg have been slightly modified.

The young German Melwin Fink retains the top spot with a lead of 1 hour and 52 minutes over Hugo Dhallenne (979 – YC Saint Lunaire), now 2nd, with Austrian Kargl dropping a place.

Among the prototypes, there is no modification to the current hierarchy, however, there is some good news for Camille Bertel (900 – Cap Ingelec). The skipper originally finished the leg outside the permitted time but has now been issued a new ranking of 23rd position in her category.

Race details – Entry list – Tracker

After a one day postponement, the 23rd edition of the Mini Transat, reserved for the Mini 6.50, the smallest offshore racing class at 21-feet, got underway on September 27, 2021.

A notable proving ground for sailors with shorthanded aspirations, it is also test platform for new boat types, with 65 competitors entering in the production division for manufactured boats while the prototype division has 25 entrants with custom designs.

Held biennially, with limited participation for safety that includes strict qualification guidelines, the 4,050 nm course is divided in two parts: Les Sables d’Olonne (France) to Santa Cruz de La Palma in the Canaries (Spain), restarting on October 29 for the finish at Saint-François in Guadeloupe.

Source: Mini Transat