Olivier Defranc is a French windsurfer and has competed in several national and international windsurfing competitions. His latest challenge, appropriately named “A bout de bras” and starting this month is to cross the Atlantic on a windsurfer in less than 37 days. The previous record was set by Christian Marty back in 1982
He’ll depart from Dakar in Senegal to Kourou in French Guyana – a distance: 2153NM (4100 km)
In 1982 windsurfer Christian Marty reached the coast of French Guyana and became the first person to cross the Atlantic Ocean on a windsurfer in 37 days – unequalled to this day.
Olivier had the chance to accompany Christian Marty for the last 12 km. This experience was the start of a journey for him. Over time, he perfected his windsurfing skills, going on to win at many national and international events. In 1992, he also tried to replicate Christian Marty’s crossing but due to a lack of sponsors he was unable to take to the start.
Sadly, Christian died in the tragic Concorde crash in Paris in 2000 – he was the blameless pilot. Olivier will use this new 2024 crossing to celebrate the life of Christian and pay homage to his dear friend.
Olivier Defranc will be accompanied by a 42 ft support catamaran. There will just be an inflatable dinghy for supply exchanges between the windsurfer and the catamaran. He will also be sleeping on his windsurfing board and he won’t get into the boat. While asleep, an inflatable tube will be fixed around the board for better stability and there will be a simple cover to protect him from the waves.
Olivier will use the AIB1000 AIS beacon from Digital Yacht – a self contained AIS transponder with integrated rechargeable battery so the support boat can keep a track of his location on a continuous basis
You can follow his journey here: https://olivierdefranc.skipperblogs.com/
