Vendée Globe

"I embarked on my first race, the BOC Challenge 86/87, to prove to myself that I was capable of it. I didn’t bring shame on myself but I didn’t win either. This triggered an unexpected phenomenon: a spirit of vengeance, hostility, almost hatred, which was the driving force behind my victory in the Vendée. The difference with art, or anything else, is that in sport there’s a finish line. A very basic and monomaniacal objective that demands voracious tenacity to the exclusion of all other considerations.

Except that crossing this finish line in first place annihilated, all of a sudden, all this passing madness within me. Brel didn’t believe in talent, he didn’t believe in genius, but in willfulness, desire. I immediately lost the desire to be a champion. As soon as I finished the Vendée, I announced my retirement from ocean racing and my intention to build a floating studio. Launching into the construction of my big schooner was no doubt a mistake, encouraged by media fervor that often clouds healthy discernment. The outcome of this venture was proof of this!"

Titouan Lamazou