Left: Damien Seguin and co-skipper Yoann Richomme approach the finish of the 2019 Transat Jacques Vabre in Salvador de Bahia, Brazil and (above) Seguin proudly receives the gold medal for his overall win in the Tour de France à la Voile in 2017. Seguin and Richomme finished 14th in the TJV that year, the race won by Dalin and Eliès on Vendée Globe line honours winner Apivia. By comparison Seguin’s 2008 Finot design Apacil was now looking fairly ancient, yet by the start of the Vendée a year later a huge amount of work had turned her into a different boat; but to drag a 13-year-old Imoca around the world to finish 15 hours behind Dalin’s flying Apivia was still nothing short of incredible
eventually being the sixth skipper to cross the line some 15 hours after the first one. Pretty extraordinary,’ he mutters as if still grappling with that reality, and without the slightest hint of trumpet-blowing. You have to remember that Seguin’s
of time alone at sea… it was always going to be a test of my own endurance,’ says Seguin, who goes on to explain that his confidence grew only very gradually. But… for those who’ve followed his
race it was obvious that Damien Seguin felt at ease from the outset, and that every additional day, every hundred miles ticked off the list, every sunrise brought him joy as well as reinforced his initial hunch – this was all going to be great! ‘I guess I was really into it, focused but
having fun, reading the conditions and being in tune with the weather… so much so that I ended up rounding Cape Horn in fourth place.’ By that time most punters had exhausted their list of superlatives and Seguin had done more than most to add fuel to the fire of the Vendée Globe’s fun- damental story: prepare to be caught off guard, humble spectators, as great stories will be written before your very eyes. ‘I can see why people felt surprised,
considering that on the way back up the Atlantic I was in second place at times, to
playground of choice has for a long time been an Olympic course, on which many have praised his sharp tactical sense, his ability to react quickly and find speed – whatever the conditions. But it would be inaccurate to state that he went from sprinter to marathon runner overnight, as he’d ventured offshore long before lining up in Les Sables. ‘I’d done three Route du Rhums, but
that amounts to about 15 days at sea each time – definitely not the same scale, though it did at least tell me that I really enjoyed that type of racing. From there the Vendée Globe was a big step to take, but I’m very adaptable and this played a major part in the way I managed to be in the match. ‘It all goes back to my handicap…
Having been born without a left hand, life has always been about finding solutions and strategies,’ he says. ‘That’s what I spend my time doing, as the world in general – not only boats – is designed for people with two hands!’ Seguin is clear that he never was
tempted to lower his own expectations, and therefore had to constantly find ways around hurdles. It forged his mindset as an individual and provided him with the energy to find a way out of every tricky
situation on his Imoca 60. The other key component, of course, is
a very communicative personality, the desire he has to share his own experiences. ‘I generally want things to be truthful so I did not set out with a pre-written story- board, and I never wanted to hide the bad stuff. It simply happened that I seemed to always find a positive side to whatever was happening, and I suppose that spoke to people.’ Four Olympic campaigns and ‘dozens
of world championships’, as he counts them, have forged Seguin’s mental tough- ness. ‘Having joined France’s squad in the early 2000s I benefited from an outstand- ing level of support which allowed me to constantly improve,’ he says, ‘and I’m extremely grateful for all the efforts that my coaches have put in. ‘I’ve kept from that period a willingness
to uphold the highest standards of perfor- mance and work ethic. I managed to transfer that when I started racing off- shore, and it played a determining role in my Vendée preparation.’ He sums this up nicely by arguing that
because in offshore sailing there are so many parameters that escape one’s control it must be one’s duty to keep a firm handle on what actually can be controlled. Not only in the heat of the moment, but also upstream – and that includes choosing the right entourage in the preparatory phases: ‘This is why, as soon as I bought the boat, I went to see Jean Le Cam, as I thought
SEAHORSE 53
PHOTOS JEAN-MARIE LIOT
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