22 boaters sentenced after the start of the Route du Rhum
The correctional court of Saint-Malo summoned Monday, June 17, 2019 several boaters. The owners and skippers of the boats were accused of having entered the areas prohibited by the organization of the Route du Rhum during the departure of the transatlantic race 2018. The 22 offenders were fined 250 euros. They also had their coastal or offshore licenses suspended for 6 months.
Dilemma of the organizations: Combining safety and spectacle of the sailboats
The Route du Rhum 2018 had seen the implementation of an unprecedented security device. The navigation order violated by boaters provided for exclusion zones reserved for skippers in the race, zones for official boats and others for private boaters. Faced with the record number of participants, 123 yachts at the start, and the speed of the new maxi-trimarans, the organizers and institutions had reinforced the controls. They led to these unprecedented convictions.
Beyond the judgment, they are a major evolution towards a policy of sanction. The organizers of major sailing events are thus legitimized in their choice of start supervision. They would be accused of irresponsibility at the slightest accident between faster and faster sailing boats and spectators, who are often uninformed occasional sailors.
