Swiss IMOCA skipper Oliver Heer, 36, has expressed his relief yesterday afternoon, Sunday 23 June, after the International Jury of the Transat CIC race dismissed allegations of outside assistance.
The allegations stemmed from a call between Ollie, and his long term mental coach Wolfgang Jenewein which occurred during the Transat CIC, a challenging 3,500 nautical mile, solo transatlantic race from Lorient to New York last month. Several days into the race, Ollie suffered a significant knockdown resulting in considerable damage to his boat and minor injuries to himself.
Ollie finally finished the race in 25th position, in 18 days 10 hours, well within the cut-off time of the finish line closing.
In dismissing the allegations, the International Jury concluded that no rule was infringed and that the aid received from Dr. Jenewein was permitted under rule 21 of the Notice of Race. The final decision is that no further action will be taken by the international jury.
Ollie comments “The International Jury’s decision is a big relief. Integrity and fairplay are values I put great importance on, and the allegations affected me personally. With this investigation over, I can now shift my focus on preparing myself and the boat for the next challenge ahead – the Vendée Globe 2024.”