| France. Interview with Gilles Ollier & Yann Penfornis of Multiplast, builder of Generali |
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| Wednesday, 12 April 2006 | |
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Company news: What sort of challenge does this construction represent for Multiplast? Gilles Ollier: Multiplast is one of the world’s specialists in building boats designed to sail round the world. The yard’s achievements and experience mean that the yard has been able to accumulate a certain amount of information to design and build reliable boats. Our ambition is to build the best boat possible to give Yann Elies the assets he needs to fight against the leaders. How long will it take to build the boat? Yann Penfornis: Construction gets underway as soon as the first files have been received from the architects, thus on 17th April 2006. The launch has been planned for the start of March 2007, 11 months later. You are working alongside Jean-Marie Finot, with whom you started out in yacht design. A fine history continues? Gilles Ollier: Yes, I started out in 1970 with Jean-Marie Finot. An incredible time in the full throes of an enterprising atmosphere. The Groupe Finot was at the forefront of the modern vein in naval architecture when computer were starting to play a major role in design. After 36 years in this demanding but exciting field, I feel like that was just yesterday! Chance has brought us back together in Vannes and it is a great pleasure to build Generali for Yann Elies, particularly since I often raced against his father. You know Yann Elies well. Is it a very distinctive association? Yann Penfornis: I got to know Yann when he was crewing for Bruno Peyron. And now he is skipper and project manager. I don’t think this new role has changed him that much. He seems to be as pragmatic and determined as ever. It promises to be a healthy and frank collaboration. Does the Multiplast / Finot / Elies trio mean that you will be building the boat with the best performance potential in the fleet? Gilles Ollier: Yacht racing is a mechanical sport. Sportsmen cannot perform well if they do not have performance equipment. The word "trio" is restrictive as the sponsor Generali cannot be overlooked. It is in fact a team race where each of the parties involved has a part to play. Each stage must be performed to the highest professional standards. The last stage – and no doubt the most dangerous and most interesting in terms of media coverage – is the stage where the skipper takes over. In the past, each player has already demonstrated what he is capable of. I am confident that our team will be one of the best out there. Never the less, we have to work and keep on working. When it comes to competing, nothing is certain and the opponents are not laying idle either. |
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| Last Updated ( Wednesday, 12 April 2006 ) |
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