NOL:2009020318-W

Day 105 Leader on the water: Steve White 533 miles to finish
Magnificent seventh
15:00 HRS GMT. Rankings
1 . Michel Desjoyeaux (Foncia) finished after 84 days 3 hours, 9 minutes
2 . Armel Le Cléac'h (Brit Air) finished after 89 days 9 hours 39 minutes
3 . Marc Guillemot (Safran) at 95 days 3 hours 19 mn. 36 sec.
4 . Sam Davies (Roxy) finished after 95 days 04 hours 39 minues
5 . Brian Thompson (Bahrain Team Pindar) 98 days 20 hours 29 mn. 55 sec.
6 . Dee Caffari (Aviva) at 99 days 1 hours 10 mn. 57 sec.
7 . Arnaud Boissières (Akena Vérandas) at 105 days 2 hours 33 mn. 50 sec.
still racing:
8 . Steve White (Toe in the Water) 533 miles to finish
9 . Rich Wilson (Great American III) at 2235 miles to finish
10 . Raphaël Dinelli (Fondation Océan Vital) at 3152 miles to finish
11 . Norbert Sedlacek (Nauticsport - Kapsch) at 3588 miles to finish
RDG . Vincent Riou (PRB). 30 boats started
A teenage dream came true today when Arnaud Boissières finished seventh this afternoon in his first Vendée Globe. At the age of seventeen, when he was ill with leukemia he was brought by with his father to see the first Vendée Globe heroes and to try and forget fro a few days his illness which had been discovered six months earlier.
At 14h35'50" GMT today (Sunday 22nd February) Boissières, the skipper of Akena Vérandas, crossed the finish line of the 2008-2009 Vendée Globe in seventh place after 105 days 02 hours 33 minutes and 50 seconds of racing averaging 11.04 knots on the water covering 27,841 miles. He sailed the 24,840 theoretical miles at an average speed of 9.85 knots.
After two and a half years of chemotherapy, Arnaud Boissières decided to earn his living from his passion for the sea. Cali raced in the 1999 Mini Transat when terrible conditions decimated the fleet. His boat was dismasted, but he completed the race after a pit stop in France. He raced twice subsequently, finishing third in 2001.
He also worked as a preparateur for Yves Parlier and Catherine Chabaud and sailed with Olivier de Kersauson on his Oryx round the world race attempt.
Today, twenty years after the first Vendée Globe, his life has come full circle back to Les Sables d¹Olonne, where today he was welcomed by tens of thousands of spectators, as was the case for the six competitors, who finished before him.
In this particularly tough Vendée Globe, making it back to Les Sables d¹Olonne is in itself an achievement. Cali, as Arnaud is nicknamed, could never have imagined finishing seventh, when he set out. The icing on the cake after a round the world race that he managed prudently on his Open 60 which was launched back in 1998.
A Finot-Conq design with a fixed keel that finished sixth in the hands of Thomas Coville in 2001 and fifth with Sébastien Josse in 2005, apart from a ripped solent, a broken wind generator and a satellite dome ripped off in the Pacific, he did not suffer any major damage, in spite of going through some severe storms, including one at Cape Horn, which he rounded for the first time on 16th January.
After a long struggle with Dee Caffari and Brian Thompson, Arnaud Boissières got left behind in the climb back up the Atlantic, where he was handicapped by his torn solent. After a final North Atlantic low on 6th February, Cali completed his Vendée Globe in light airs in the Bay of Biscay. A gentle finish, mirroring the character of the skipper, whose quiet determination ensured that the project was smoothly run from the beginning to the end.
Arnaud's times
Crossed the Equator: 13 days 22h38 (17th place)
Passed the Cape of Good Hope: 28 days 21h25 (17th place)
Passed Cape Leeuwin : 42 days 13h08 (13th place)
Rounded Cape Horn: 67 days 11h28 (8th place)
Crossed the Equator: 86 days 6h41 (7th place)
Finish in Les Sables : 105 days 2h 33 (7th place)
Arnaud Boissières quotes:
" My boat was extraordinary. She already came sixth and fifth and now seventh, so I owe her a lot. It's a bit like Roxy coming first, first and fourth. It is the designers, who came up with these great boats, and I just try to drive it as best I can. I tried not to break anything as I would have been told off afterwards. The first to come out to me this morning was Dee Caffari, which was great as we did a lot of the race together and we often communicated with each other. These English sailors are extraordinary and I had a good relationship with Dee in particular. When you see all the people here, you start to wonder if you haven't done something extraordinary. I don't believe I've done anything out of the ordinary. I just sailed her as well as I could."
" Of course, I didn't expect such a welcome. There were crowds for Michel, Armel and Marc, so maybe people said it would be unfair if there weren't crowds out for me. When I entered this harbour two and a half years ago, it already felt like I was in the Vendée Globe."
"I was told to finish today because the bar closes tonight. It was a great welcome. I'm from Arcachon, where you can find some fabulous oysters, but in Les Sables the atmosphere is special. I was adopted by the locals and the boat is from Vendée. I'll have to set up a twinning between Arcachon and here."
"I had time to get ready for this finish. A couple of days ago I had fishermen on the VHF asking about how I was. I have great respect for them and I found that really touching."
" I was down at Cape Horn just ahead of Aviva. I turned left. I was warned that it was not easy after the Horn. But Aviva and Pindar really sail quickly and I had a tough time with the fishermen off Brazil and the oil rigs. I called up my project manager who told me it was normal that I was left behind and to head for the coast of Brazil, where it is nice and warm. On the radio sessions, I could only repeat the same thing every time - fishermen, oil rigs, no wind..."
" I didn't have any wine left. It was taking so long. I never asked myself why I was there. I'm wondering what I'm doing here though! From 23.30 tonight I can start giving my estimate for installing a veranda... But by 00.15 I'll be in bed."
" When you see people like Mich and Vincent Riou and Peyron in the race, you think you don't have much chance -maybe tenth or fifteenth if you're lucky, but finishing was really the goal, so finishing seventh is great. After 105 days alone, you necessarily change somewhere inside. Your family, partner and team are also transformed. Of course, there were some hard times. Gusts at 85 knots. I call up Denis Horeau, the Race Director, and he tells me they're looking at the weather for the three of us at the Horn. So the race was suspended. I've known Brian for some time and now I know Dee well, so it was nice to be with them and it all went well."
" Off Tierra del Fuego, you have violent gusts. You see the snow-capped mountains and as you approach the Horn, you tell yourself you have to merit the Horn. When you're in the storm, you don't have time to worry. You get ready for it and get your food and water and survival gear together and just wait. You can't sleep or rest as you wonder how bad it will be. After you have a great story to tell and you feel like you have accomplished something. Brian told me to get close to the Horn to see what it looked like. I did the English Vendée Globe. I knew Brian from the Mini days and Sam and as I said before, Dee is extraordinary."
"This wasn't a challenge going back to my past. I got over my problems with support of those around me. I don't see it as revenge for those trying times. I'm just lucky to earn my living from my passion. I'm someone who is privileged. Thanks to people like Jean-Philippe Chomette."
The future? I'm already thinking of setting out again and starting a new 4-year campaign to develop a boat and team.
" The team? This is vital. You need to get on with them. We're only a small team with a group of friends, who come and help. To begin with, I owe everything to my parents, my sisters, who have always supported me. There aren't words to describe the family. You need that solid support on land. My Dad told me not to say anything stupid when talking in a crowd."
" I haven't been beaten yet at squash in Les Sables. Mich Desj' should come here and give me a game!"
" The boat was perfect for my size as Jojo wasn't very tall either. I'm not a gladiator, but I train and keep fit."
"vFollowing my leukaemia at the age of 17, I underwent treatment for 18 months. When I began this project with Jean-Philippe Chomette and Christophe Chabot, I met Christine Janin, who was the first Frenchwomen to climb Everest. She welcomes sick kids to the Alps. When I did the Round the Island race, we said there was a parallel between the sea and mountains, so we did a partnership with that charity. It seemed natural. There was no calculation in choosing that charity."
" I'm looking forward to fresh fish and fresh vegetables and a gin and tonic with more gin than tonic."
A look back over 105 days of racing
3rd day First days, first storm. The Bay of Biscay welcomed the competitors with some hellish conditions. Winds in excess of 40 knots, rough seas and the first boats were forced out of the race. Arnaud Boissières made it through this first test with damage to his wind gauge.
6th day A daring easterly option. While the fleet remained tightly packed off Africa, Arnaud decided to attempt an easterly option. He as the first to pass inside the Canaries. Sailing downwind he gradually moved up the rankings. 11th by Cape Verde, he remained cautious knowing that the results of his option would only be seen at the Doldrums. In a few days his rivals managed to fight their way back and a disappointed Cali found himself in 17th place.
15th day 23rd November Crossed the Equator
20th Day To the south of Salvador da Bahia, a voyage into the unknown
Like several of the rookies, Arnaud had never sailed south of Salvador da Bahia. By going further south, he was entering unknown territory. The next day he beat his own record for time spent at sea of 21 days.
30th Day- 8th December Crossed the longitude of the cape of Good Hope -Entry into the Indian Ocean
32nd and 43rd day of the race Loss of his wind generator and solent in the Indian
After a slow dive in the South Atlantic, AKENA Vérandas crossed the longitude of the Cape of Good Hope on 8th December. Two days later he encountered his first big southern storm. Knocked down, his wind generator went into the water and he lost three blades. Although only minor damage, this was to lead to an energy shortage. Eleven days later, the solent ripped. This was a already a handicap in the south, but was to be decisive on the way back up the Atlantic.
44th Day- 22nd December Passed the longitude of Cape Leuuwin - entry into the Pacific
45th day With Aviva and Pindar, start of the battle between France and Britain As he apprached the coast of Australia, Brian Thompson was forced to slow with structural problems and found himself alongside Aviva and Akena Vérandas. They were to stay together until Cape Horn
46th Day - 24th December Santa Claus aboard AKENA Vérandas Arnaud filmed himself disguised as Father Christmas on the deck of his boat and he was elected "Best Father Christmas" in the Vendée Globe ".
65th day Aviva right behind Better placed on the way down towords the Horn, AKENA Vérandas has an advantage over AVIVA.
66th Day After the final Pacific Ice Gate, a storm that was more violent than forecast hit the boat from Vendée. In winds above 60 knots, a powerful wave broke off the Fleet antenna, the big satellite dome at the stern. Arnaud could no longer send videos and photos. It becomes more complicated to obtain weather information.
67th Day Since early January, Arnaud had been worried about his energy supply. He fears he may not have taken enough diesel on board. He begins rationing by limiting his use of the computer and putting the autopilot in economy mode. He makes the most of the sunshine and manages to repair his wind generator.
68th Day - 15th January Cape Horn lives up to its reputation. A thundery low develops over South America. The forecast announced winds in excess of 80 knots so the three boats were facing a great danger. The race was suspended on the advice of the Race Directors. Arnaud approached the centre of the low where the gusts were under fifty knots. Shaken up, the monohull made it through without any damage.
73rd Day
The first days in the Atlantic went smoothly. Propelled along by a southerly airstream, the boat made it up the coast of Argentina without any problems. But then, the wind eased off and the absence of a solent became a real handicap. AKENA Vérandas got caught in a calm zone, while AVIVA and Pindar managed to get away. This was the start of the torture for Arnaud, who right up to the Azores, experienced some tricky conditions with very light winds.
82nd day France had a general strike and Arnaud demonstrated against the absence of wind. "Impossible to talk with those, who are responsible"
87th day - 3rd February Back in the North Atlantic
90th day The biggest storm was not expected to be in the North Atlantic but 6th February was particularly difficult. The wind gusted to 40 knots, but above all AKENA had to sail upwind into heavy seas. Arnaud put on his dry suit for the third time since the start