September 1, 2025
1 minute reading time
Biotherm, skippered by Paul Meilhat, with the rest of the IMOCA Fleet at the start of Leg 4 during The Ocean Race Europe 2025 in Nice, France on August 31, 2025. (Photo by Jean-Louis Carli / The Ocean Race Europe 2025)
Fleet departs Nice, France in glamour conditions on Leg 4 of The Ocean Race Europe
The seven-boat fleet of international IMOCA crews competing in The Ocean Race Europe 2025 has left Nice, France on Leg 4 of the five-stage race which will see the teams round the French island of Corsica on their way to the finish in Genova, Italy.
Conditions in the Bay of Nice were benign for the 1700 CEST start as the yachts – all flying their massive Code Zero headsails – jockeyed for position on the startline, before heading upwind in around eight knots of wind towards the first scoring gate situated around eight miles away off Monaco.
Holcim – PRB (SUI) with Nico Lunven standing in as skipper for Rosalin Kuiper (NED) made the best start at the pin end of the line and were able to use the resulting clear air to stretch away from the pack in the opening few minutes. Race leader Biotherm (FRA) skippered by Paul Meilhat (FRA) also got away cleanly at the windward end of the line. Team AMAALA (SUI / KSA) were the only team to start on port, making an early split from the pack as they initially headed offshore.
The course for Leg 4 takes the fleet on a 550-nautical mile loop around Corsica, with the teams having to negotiate the notoriously tricky Strait of Bonifacio – an 11km-long passage between Corsica & the Italian island of Sardinia that is known for its swirling currents & shoals – before turning north toward the finish line in Genova – host city for the Grand Finale of inaugural edition of The Ocean Race Europe in 2021.
Monaco scoring gate:
- Biotherm +2 points
- Holcim-PRB +1 point
- Paprec – Arkéa
- Team Malizia
- Allagrande Mapei
- Be Water Positive
- Team Amaala
Text and images courtesy of The Ocean Race. Read more here.