Francis Joyon has had to give up on his North Atlantic record attempt, as the weather was not developing favourably. After just a few hours at sea, the IDEC trimaran saw her speed gradually drop off. Another opportunity lies ahead early next week.

It’s back to North Cove Marina and the Manhattan Sailing Club for Francis Joyon and IDEC… In the end, the wind that the yachtsman was hoping to find at sea did not materialise, as Jean-Yves Bernot explained to us this morning: «The low-pressure centre has grown, and Francis had to turn further south, thus extending his journey, hoping to meet up with a stronger breeze, fifty miles or so ahead of him. As IDEC advanced, her speed tended to fall off, and when you face that sort of situation, there are no two ways about it: It’s back to base to wait for another window of opportunity.» It was clearly the right moment to turn back, so the decision was easy to take, in spite of the understandable frustration caused by this false start. «Another opportunity looks likely early next week,» the router explained this morning. For Francis and IDEC, the waiting game continues!

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