BT Sébastien Josse - Vendée Globe 2008

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Position / Team Distance to leader / finish

1Foncia	6763.2

2Veolia Environnement	106.1

3PRB	622.0

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15 Hrs AgoSeb due to reach Auckland tonight

Sébastien does not have much longer to wait until he reaches land - BT should arrive in Auckland in about 6-8 hours time (0200 GMT). Seb will be met by BT shore team Pierre-Emanuel Herrisse and Rhys Mellor and they will moor BT at the Viaduct Basin, home to the 2003 America's Cup. Today is perhaps made even more difficult for Seb to see his rivals round Cape Horn - Michel Desjoyeaux rounded the famous Cape in the early hours of this morning. The symbolic 'left turn' puts the frontrunners on the route towards 'home'.

45 Hrs AgoMalbon’s main forces retirement

Jonny Malbon (Artemis, GBR) has this morning announced his decision to retire from the Vendée Globe due to the ongoing problems with his mainsail. Artemis’s mainsail began delaminating three weeks ago, apparently due to a problem with the adhesion between the scrim and fibres. Over the past 24 hours the sail has broken down further, with a one metre-long vertical tear developing as the final taffeta layer also began to disintegrate. The damage is so severe that Malbon cannot repair it onboard, as he explained during yesterday’s radio broadcast: “It’s getting worse and worse and worse. I simply cannot repair that sort of damage, I’ve never seen anything like it before, I don’t have enough materials or glue or I haven’t got enough hands.”

3 Days AgoSeb ETA Auckland Monday night

The Professor (aka Michel Desjoyeaux) extends his lead to 75 miles ahead of Bilou (aka Roland Jourdain). The 2000 Vendée Globe winner cannot be caught for now and there is little the pursuers can do except hope that the South Atlantic may offer some tactical gamesmanship. Vincent Riou (2004 winner) has moved into fourth place. British competitors Dee Caffari and Jonny Malbon are both suffering from mainsail delamination - not easy to repair in the Southern Ocean conditions. Canadian skipper Derek Hatfield has made landfall reaching one of the smaller islands off South Tasmania. And Seb has reported that he now expects to reach Auckland Monday night (European time).

4 Days AgoCape Horn Straight Ahead...

As Michel Desjoyeaux, followed by Roland Jourdain, is still leading the Vendée Globe, the frontrunners are approaching the famous Cape Horn, that they should go around early next week. The two leaders have widened the gap with their pursuers as Jean Le Cam, 3rd is now 339 milles behind Desjoyeaux. For Sébastien, the Kiwi coast is getting closer and he is expected to arrive between Monday evening and Wednesday morning. Read below the full story of Seb's Vendée Globe...

5 Days AgoHappy New Year

Seb and the BT team send best wishes to everyone for 2009! There is little change in the Vendée Globe this morning for the remaining 15 skippers in the race as Michel Desjoyeaux and Roland Jourdain cross the East Pacific Ice Gate and now plan their route to the final Southern Ocean cape - the notorious Cape Horn. Seb is expected to reach New Zealand between Monday and Wednesday next week dependent on the weather as his shore team prepare to leave Europe to meet him on his arrival. We're sure that Seb will appreciate seeing some friendly faces after so many days alone at sea.

6 Days AgoPaprec-Virbac 2 loses port rudder

Today at around 1300hrs GMT, Jean-Pierre Dick skipper of Paprec-Virbac 2 suffered a collision with a solid object removing the port rudder and most of its assembly from the stern. He immediately slowed the boat, reduced sail to two reefs and a staysail and turned on to the opposite gybe so that he could steer with his starboard rudder. This leaves Jean-Pierre about 1700 miles south of the French Polynesian Islands, 2700 miles WNW of Cape Horn, and about 1800 miles from New Zealand. He is now making his way north towards the South Pacific high pressure system which will initially provide calmer winds and seas while he and his team assess the options. Jean-Pierre was another of the race’s great contenders and had led the fleet in the early stages of the Southern Ocean before damage to his rudder system slowed his race. Dick managed to patch up the rudder system and continue but this blow has now sealed his fate.

6 Days AgoLast Ice Gate...

Michel Desjoyeaux, leader of the fleet for 15 days, is now crossing the last Ice Gate of the Vendée Globe 2008-2009 before heading back to the South and negotiating the passage of the well known Cape Horn around 4th or 5th of January. With Roland Jourdain, 94 miles behind the leader, the 2 frontrunners widen the gap on their pursuers: Jean Le Cam, 3rd, is 250 milles behind Jourdain. The duo Riou-Le Cleac'h are now 450 miles behind Jourdain. For Sébastien, he is following his way to the New Zealand and 2 members of his shore team will leave France in a couple of days in order to meet him on his arrival to Auckland.

7 Days AgoHeading for New Zealand

Following yesterday’s difficult decision to abandon the Vendée Globe race due to irreparable rudder damage (see full story in News section below), Sébastien has turned BT towards New Zealand. Aiming to get to the north of the high pressure system so that he can sail downwind on port tack utilising the functioning starboard rudder, Seb is heading 306 degrees at present making 4 knots with New Zealand still 1200 miles away. Overnight in the Vendée Globe race, the leaders Michel Desjoyeaux and Roland Jourdain have sailed at speed putting even more distance between themselves and the chasing Jean Le Cam now over 350 miles behind Foncia and Armel Le Cléac’h and Vincent Riou. With Seb’s retirement yesterday and that of Canadian Derek Hatfield, who broke two spreaders in a knockdown, only just over half of the Vendée Globe fleet remain on the race course. The 16 remaining skippers will undoubtedly write many more gripping chapters in the weeks to come until this amazing Vendée story is concluded and we will continue to report all the latest news here.

8 Days AgoVendée Globe over for Seb and BT

Sébastien has had to make the difficult decision to abandon the 2008 Vendée Globe following severe damage to his rudder system which is beyond repair - a huge disappointment for Seb and everybody involved in the project. BT will now head for New Zealand... Read full story below in News. Watch today's video conference with Seb (apologies for the poor sound quality - the onboard microphone was broken in the capsize) or listen to today's audio conference - both available in the video gallery .

9 Days AgoEffects of Boxing Day capsize...

Onboard BT, Sébastien Josse, is sailing in 30-35 knots and rough seas still unable to fully assess the serious damage to his rudder system. The effects of the Boxing Day capsize are only beginning to sink in for Sébastien, and the reality that both he and BT are extremely lucky to have survived at all. There are now only two options open to Seb, who as one of the pre-race favourites has raced a brilliant Vendée Globe so far and extraordinarily is actually still in 6th place - to patch-up BT and carry on, albeit in a compromised fashion, or pull-out of the race. Another 12-24 hours will reveal which of the options he has to take. See full story below...

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Weather/Analysis30-40 knots SE

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A Look Back at Sébastien Josse’s Vendée Globe2 January 2009

For nearly seven weeks Sébastien Josse onboard BT was a major contender in the world’s toughest solo sporting challenge, the Vendée Globe. Sébastien played it wise tactically, making the most of the boat’s...

Forced to abandon Vendée Globe after valiant attempt to win the toughest of all sporting challenges…29 December 2008

Sébastien has had to make the difficult decision to abandon the 2008 Vendée Globe following severe damage to his rudder system which is beyond...

DAY 50: Effects of Boxing Day capsize sink in…28 December 2008

The effects of the Boxing Day capsize are only beginning to sink in for Sébastien, and the reality that both he and BT are extremely lucky to have survived at all. Onboard BT, Sébastien Josse, is sailing in 30-35 knots...

Day 49: Still waiting to assess repairs as Seb escapes north away from storm27 December 2008

After suffering a major knock-down in 60 knots yesterday, Sébastien Josse is now nursing BT north to reach calmer conditions to fully assess the rudder system and structural...

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Week 6 roundup - As brutal as ever19 December 2008

Tough end to yet another tough week, which was marked by Jean-Pierre Dick rudder problems and subsequent loss of leadership, and a few hours later by...