Specialist in social and property protection in France, AG2R LA MONDIALE is a major player in French sport. A sponsor in cycling since 1997 with its eponymous professional team, the Group is also one of the oldest partners in French sailing with the Transat AG2R LA MONDIALE born in 1992.
20 years after the first victory of a mixed duo in the Transat, with Karine Fauconnier and Lionel Lemonchois, AG2R LA MONDIALE is more strongly committed to diversity and will offer registration to mixed duos with the aim that they be as numerous as possible to set off from Concarneau on April 19, 2020. A dedicated ranking will also be created to reward these male/female duos.
For this, AG2R LA MONDIALE has obtained the support of the FFVoile, which will notably carry the message of diversity of the Transat AG2R LA MONDIALE to World Sailing (International Federation) and which is committed to the development of women's sailing.
Sailing, which allows women and men to line up on an identical starting line aboard the same boats, is among the exceptions in this area. And this is already what attracted AG2R LA MONDIALE in the early hours of this transatlantic race. With the arrival today of an offshore racing event at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, the Group hopes that this race, which has seen two generations of sailors pass since its creation, can be part of the preparation of competing duos. for the Games.
Committed to the values of performance and solidarity very dear to the world of the sea, AG2R LA MONDIALE offers duos every two years the opportunity to compete on the Atlantic aboard strictly identical boats. The only transatlantic race on equal terms, the Transat AG2R LA MONDIALE therefore reveals all the talents of women and men capable of not only taking up a sporting challenge but also a human challenge. To perform in this particularly demanding race, we must ensure the best possible strategy together and take turns to physically hold out for this long marathon of almost 3 weeks. Decision-making, boat adjustments, recovery and analysis of weather data, life on board, everything is shared between two people during the AG2R LA MONDIALE transatlantic race. And if the duo is a strength, AG2R LA MONDIALE is convinced that diversity constitutes real wealth.
THEY SAID
José Messer, Director of AG2R LA MONDIALE sponsorship:
“The arrival of a mixed ocean racing event for the Paris 2024 Games seems to us to be a fantastic opportunity to further open the Transat AG2R LA MONDIALE to women and mixed duos. If one of them has managed to put their name on the list in the past with Karine Fauconnier and Lionel Lemonchois, we hope that many of them will seek victory in 2020. The Transat is the perfect event to gauge yourself and acquire expertise in view of the Olympic Games, AG2R LA MONDIALE wishes to support this dynamic and help as many mixed duos as possible to participate in the event next April. We are convinced that the history of the Transat will be magnified.”
Mathieu Sarrot, Director of Offshore Events OC Sport – Pen Duick:
“The desire to support the Transat AG2R LA MONDIALE towards greater diversity is excellent news. This echoes the project of the Brittany Region and Crédit Mutuel de Bretagne to launch female detection. The ambition through the system put in place for the Transat is to have a maximum of French women but also internationals at the start of the next Transat and the following ones. Preparing in mixed doubles for the Paris 2024 Olympics can be done through the Transat AG2R LA MONDIALE, this is the message we want to send today. »
Nicolas Hénard, President of the FFVoile:
“The integration of mixed offshore racing for Paris 2024 is bearing fruit. A few days ago, we announced a detection program dedicated to females with our France Finistère Course au Large Pole. Today, we are alongside AG2R LA MONDIALE to announce that registration will be offered to mixed crews for the 2020 edition of the Transat. I thank them for encouraging the practice of mixed doubles in Ocean Racing, a new Olympic discipline which will enter the program for the 2024 Olympic Games. I hope that this opportunity will allow more mixed crews to participate in the next Transat AG2R LA MONDIALE and in particular foreign teams. FFVoile has charted a new path and I am certain that other projects will come to fruition. »
Yann Eliès, skipper of StMichel who participated in the Solo Maitre Coq in doubles with Samantha Davies:
“We may say that sailing is a sport accessible to women and men, but I still think that we are a step behind in terms of diversity. It is important to take this turn. Men and women, we are made to live together and in the same way we are made to sail together. Doing a double race this season with Samantha brought me a lot. We are very complementary. This works because we sail on boats which are not too physical and which require a lot of technical mastery and qualities that we find in both men and women. The AG2R LA MONDIALE initiative will allow female talents to flourish and we will also see results in mixed duos. Diversity is only positive! »
Karine Fauconnier, only woman to have won the Transat AG2R LA MONDIALE in mixed duo and coordinator of Lorient Grand Large:
“I have sailed a lot in mixed doubles in my career. I fervently defend diversity. By sailing together, double-handed, men have as much to gain as women. The crew with whom I sailed in a trimaran always told me that they appreciated sailing with a woman, that they behaved differently, that they sailed more peacefully. For my part, I learned a lot by sailing with men, especially double-handed. I only see advantages! »
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