A 28-year-old engineer, Romain Legall will compete this summer time in his first Solitaire du Figaro, one of the well-known offshore races in France. Final yr, this Breton was chosen by the Crusing Excellence Heart (CEV) in La Rochelle to participate on this occasion. Due to the mortgage of a sailboat, it’ll signify this coaching middle devoted to probably the most proficient racers. Topped with this confidence, Romain Legall has additionally chosen to place his sports activities venture “on the service of a trigger” by associating the Secours populaire français (SPF) along with his journey. The skipper will thus put on the colours of this affiliation and its departmental department based mostly in La Rochelle.
“Now we have the identical goal: to search out funds. A part of the cash collected for this boat will finance the SPF”, summarizes Romain Legall, joyful to “put this boat on the service of the values of the affiliation”. These funds, particulars the Finisterian, will make it doable to finance an SPF marketing campaign centered on “entry to sport”. Sports activities licenses devoted to younger individuals will be bought.
On Could 3, the “baptism” of the boat within the colours of the affiliation will thus be organized in La Rochelle within the presence of round twenty younger individuals from households helped by the SPF. A visit to sea will then permit them to attend the coaching of Romain Legall. One other day devoted to younger individuals, scheduled for July, can be in preparation with the skipper.
In actuality, this dedication of the engineer employed by Decathlon started in 2022 when he was making ready for the Mini-Transat, one other solo race on 6.50 m boats. This venture, led collectively with the skipper Léo Bothorel, had already been carried out below the colours of the Secours populaire (Léo Bothorel can be racing this yr within the Mini-Transat, additionally below the colours of the SPF).
The funds raised then made it doable to finance a marketing campaign devoted to the vacations of the poorest households. “They espouse 100% the philosophy of the SPF, their dedication makes it doable to keep in mind that the affiliation doesn’t solely present meals and clothes assist”, underlines Jean-Louis Rolland, the final secretary of the SPF in Charente-Maritime who salutes the convictions of those two skippers. After the Solitaire du Figaro, Romain Legall, who spends greater than 150 days at sea every year, hopes in the future to participate within the Vendée Globe or the Route du rhum. “It might be large to participate in it with the Secours Populaire,” smiles the skipper.
