ALICANTE, Spain – He’s had to wait two long years but French sailor Seb Marsset finally got the news he was waiting for with a call-up to the Team Alvimedica race crew for the Volvo Ocean Race 2014-15 first leg on Thursday.
The 29-year-old Lorient sailor had to watch from the sidelines for nine months in the last edition when he was a reserve for French boat Groupama which eventually went on to clinch the trophy in scenes of jubilation in his home port in June 2012.
He refused to give up on his dream for a first berth in the Race and grabbed a late opportunity to show his skills as a bowman/trimmer with Team Alvimedica skipper Charlie Enright. Marsset is the only Frenchman in the Turkish/U.S. team.
“We were fortunate enough to meet him and have time to trial him on board and for the first leg he is a good fit,” says Bill Erkelens, the CEO of the Team Alvimedica campaign.
Marsset worked with Groupama for four years and as well as playing an important support role in their Volvo Ocean Race triumph of 2011-12, took part in their Tour de France à la Voile campaign last year.
He has also sailed the MOD 70s and was at the centre of Class 40 sailing between 2006 and ’09.
The young French sailor will have to wait a little longer before testing himself further on the Team Alvimedica boat.
All the one-design Volvo Ocean 65s are out of the water right now in Alicante for a compulsory 14-day maintenance period following the excitement of Leg 0 which finished at the weekend.
The work is being carried out by the Volvo Ocean Race’s Boatyard, led by Nick Bice.
“It’s good to see the real life backing up the theoretical life. The speculation has disappeared now. The teams can see that we are professionals, they pretty much leave us to their own devices to service the boats, they trust us,” he says.
Meanwhile, the sailors themselves are enjoying one final breather before the serious stuff kicks off on October 4 with the Alicante in-port race followed by the departure for Leg 1 a week later.
– VOR
