boat
Our IMOCA is designed to be one of the fastest monohulls in the world.
The IMOCA 60s have been at the forefront of experimental yacht design. The latest generations feature foils, which enable yachts to lift up higher out of the water, reducing displacement and enabling much higher boat speeds to be achieved.
However, foils are not advantageous in all wind and sea conditions, which has resulted in a fascinating competition between these two design approaches.
Ollie’s boat, the Farr Designed 2007 IMOCA 60 ‘Gitana 80’, is a non-foiling, dagger-board construction.
our IMOCA
NAME
full sail
length
Gitana 80
620m / 2034.12ft
18.28m / 59.9ft
rudder
beam
Twin Rudder
5.80m / 19.02ft
design
draught
built
Farr Yacht Design
4.50m / 14.76ft
New Zealand, 2007
mast height
berthed
29m / 95.14ft
Port La Foret, France
history of our imoca
Gitana 80 is designed by French sailor Loïck Peyron with the specific aim of participating in the Vendée Globe
They lead for the first 16 days of the 2008 the Vendée Globe before retiring after dimasting
She returns to France for the Vendée Globe 2012 this time skippered by French sailing legend, Jean le Cam, finishing 5th
She finishes 11th in 2016 Vendée Globe
She claims a 14th place finish in the 2020-21 Vendée Globe
In April 2022, Oliver Heer Ocean Racing acquired Gitana 80
2022
2007
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2008
2012
2016
2020
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2022
The campaign starts well with victory in the Transat Race
After a few years in Spain, the Farr designed yacht claims 3rd in the Barcelona World Race 2010-11
French skipper Fabrice Amedeo acquires her in 2015, securing 8th in the Transat Jacques Vabre with Éric Péron
In 2018, Gitana 80 moves to Romain Attanasio
Whilst she does not benefit from some of the newer design developments, or high-speed foils, she is a solid offshore performance yacht, with a proven race history - the ideal yacht for Ollie's first Vendee Globe attempt.
2015
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WHAT IS IMOCA?
IMOCA, ‘International Monohull Open Class Association’ founded in 1991, manages the class of 60-foot Open monohulls.
The 'open' rule means that the boats do not have to be identical. Each has its own design solutions which must satisfy very specific criteria on selected parameters such as overall length, draught, stability and safety.
Combining competition, innovation, adventure and safety on a day-to-day basis, the class contributes to the growing appeal of solo offshore racing.
In 2018, the Class introduced the IMOCA Globe Series, now including two elite round-the-world races, The Vendée Globe and The Ocean Race.
