Romain Bouillard and Irina Gracheva (Déchillons la lune), 2nd* in the Transat Paprec!

The young man, who is competing in his second season in the Figaro, and the young woman, who had never competed in a race on this type of boat, managed to stay at the forefront throughout the transatlantic race. Well-placed on the descent to La Palma, distanced in the rush westward into the Atlantic Ocean, they hung on to join the incredible battle until the finish.

THEIR RACE IN NUMBERS Finish time: Friday, May 9 at 3:01:35 a.m. (local time), 9:01:35 a.m. (mainland time) Race time: 18 days, 19 hours, 59 minutes, 35 seconds Gap to the first: 42 minutes, 41 seconds Distance covered on the great circle: 3,864.22 nautical miles Distance covered over the ground: 4,261.70 nautical miles Average speed (on the great circle): 8.55 knots Average speed (over the ground): 9.43 knots

THEIR RACE DECRYPTED. The lucky star of Décrochons la lune They wanted to hold nothing back, knew that the race could be just as undecided and intended to fight at the front. Romain had warned while assuming "to allow himself to make committed and bold strategic choices" . The two threw themselves into the race with great desire and determination.

In the "top 10" throughout the descent towards the South, they are in 3rd place after Madeira then pass La Palma less than an hour after the leaders (Martin Le Pape and Mathilde Géron, DEMAIN). In the trade winds, they are nevertheless distanced by being a little further north than the leaders before finding themselves, in front of the large zone of light where the trade winds break, with the group of outsiders further south. They are also among those who chose the South option, the shortest but potentially the trickiest. Tangled up several times, faced with a torn spinnaker, they held on until the end, drawing on incredible resources. At the finish, Romain and Irina manage to grab an incredible second place at the end of a completely crazy finale! A race they will probably remember for a very long time.

* before jury