Sam Goodchild's bid for an IMOCA podium finish unravelled in the closing stages of the Route du Rhum, as Elodie Bonafous slipped past the Englishman after a string of breakages left him battling just to hold onto fourth.
Goodchild, racing MACIF Santé Prévoyance on his IMOCA debut in the race, crossed the finish line in Pointe-à-Pitre at 9.10am local time (2.10pm Paris time), missing out on the result the pre-race favourite had been chasing.
He completed the course in 11 days, 1 hour, 8 minutes and 45 seconds, finishing 1 day, 7 hours, 56 minutes and 36 seconds behind the class leader. He covered 3973 miles at an average of 13.31 knots on the direct course, 14.98 knots over the ground.
Goodchild could only watch as Corentin Horeau (MACSF) broke away early, with nothing he could do to respond. He spent much of the race pushing hard to chase down Boris Herrmann (Malizia 4), but a damaged mainsail, a J2 torn apart in a squall, and a foil failure all slowed him through the tropical depression. It was gap enough for Bonafous (Association Petits Princes-Queguiner) to sneak through and snatch third off him.
He threw everything at passing his sistership around the island overnight, but it wasn't enough. He finished just short of the podium, edged out by Bonafous after a tense final night.
At the dock, Goodchild didn't hide his frustration, though there was relief too.
"It's been two days since I've had time to properly think through my race, so right now I'm really happy to arrive in Guadeloupe because it took me three attempts to get here. It wasn't an easy race for me, I tore the mainsail a week ago but managed to repair it, then I blew the J2 three days ago in a squall doing 40 knots. I had to climb the mast to clear away what was left of the sail and hurt myself doing it. And since Sunday I haven't been able to get the port foil down either. We had an incredibly reliable boat for four years and then in one day the problems piled up.
"I thought I'd played it safe going north for the trough. Fair play to Coco, he managed it well. When I saw where Elodie was placed coming in, I thought there might be something on, even with a 60-mile gap. In the end it didn't work out, I was missing the finishing sail and the foil at the end. She lost 57 miles, that must have been hard for her, but she came back strongly and she's the one who finished third.
"I'm a competitor, and there was a way to do better than fourth. There's disappointment, frustration, but that's racing. Four years ago I wasn't here, I was in hospital in Saint-Malo. Eight years ago I had a great boat and I dismasted. So I need to focus on the positives, I'm in Guadeloupe, I gave everything out there and I don't regret anything. The team and I will learn things to do differently next time."
