The Chinese boat has aboard only two Chinese, both relatively inexperienced sailors that are surrounded by a strong core of Britons and a Basque (French), mostly with solo/short crew racing careers that are showing again that it takes not much time to learn the ropes of the new game. I bet it would take a lot more to make a crew racing sailor (without a vast solo experience) a winner on top solo racing :-)
The Skipper is Charles Caudrelier a winner of the Solitaire du Figaro and other Figaro races, winner of 2 transats (duo, 2nd in command) one on Open 60 other on a 70ft trimaran and part of the Camas team last year. A very good sailor but not one of the French stars. I can be wrong but probably it will become one on this race. Last year Camas needed some time to adapt to a new boat and a new crew and after that it was no sweat. Let's see if with the Charles is the same.
Probably the most influential man after him is Pascal Bidégorry also coming from the Figaro (winner of the Solitaire du Figaro but that on the last years has been racing multihulls. He was part of the crew when "Banque Populaire" beat the Atlantic record and also part of the crew when the same boat beat the 24 hour sailing record with an incredible average of 38k. Also won a Transat Jacques Favre (duo) on a Orma class 60ft trimaran.
A solid core that is completed by another French, Kevin Escoffier, an Engineer specialized in racing boat structures ( he is the one in charge of the development cabinet for Banque Poulaire) but he is not only that, he has won with is father a Transat Jacques Favre on a trimaran and was part of the crew on Banque Populaire when the giant trimaran beat the world circumnavigation record that still stands.
So I would say: Watch out these Guys, they have learned the ropes on the VOR thing :-)
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