THE CHANNEL

Like last year, the boats will gather in Dunkerque on the last week of June. Dunkerque is the historical start town of the Tour de France à la Voile as that’s where the boats sailed off from in 1978, 25 years ago.

The authorities of Dunkerque Dunes de Flandres and the event’s organisers will welcome the participants on the 20th of June for the boats measurements to be done.

The Tour de France à la Voile official villages will open on the 26th of June and the first gun will fire on the 27th for the teams to sail the Prologue. Two inshore races are scheduled on the 28th. And then, on the 29th the fleet will sail off for the first offshore race to Dieppe.

Dieppe will welcome the Tour de France à la Voile for the 14th time. As always, it should be a warm welcome for the teams during that Seine Maritime stopover . After the frustration of not seeing the boats and their crew last year, Dieppe’s inhabitants won’t miss it.

The boats will be in Dieppe from the 30th of June until the 2^nd of July before to head for Cherbourg-Octeville, - the most visited stopover marina in France - , where they will be on the 3rd and 4th of July.

After that, the Mumm 30’s will reach Brittany’s for a two days stopover (the 5th and the 6th) at S^t-Quay Portrieux (Côtes d’Armor). Bréhat Island and the high cliffs will be the scenery of that 4th stopover. The crews will appreciate the facilities of S^t-Quay Portrieux’s marina, which is accessible 24h a day.

By then, the fleet will have covered 301 miles in the Channel.

THE ATLANTIC

The leg towards Southern Brittany will start on the 6th of July. The boats will head for Camaret-sur-Mer (Finistère). A leg always feared as it takes the fleet through Ouessant islands and includes all what makes sailing in Brittany tricky such as current, rocks etc. The Charm of Camaret-sur-Mer will allow the competitors to rest and entertain the public with the inshore race scheduled on the 8th of July .

After that, the Mumm 30’s will start the longest offshore race of the 26th Tour de France à la Voile, a 137-mile leg to S^t-Nazaire. The Nantes-S^t-Nazaire Atlantic Metropole will welcome the competitors on the 10th and 11th of July.

The fleet will then head further south and discover the Charente-Maritime coastline. A 97-mile leg will take the boats to Oléron Island for a two days stopover on the 12th and 13th.

Arcachon will be the last Atlantic stopover for the Tour de France à la Voile 2003. The second biggest marina of the Atlantic coast will welcome the fleet from the 14th to the 17th of July. Two inshore races are scheduled on the 16th. Two tricky races as the boats will have to avoid the oysters « parks » and sandbanks. Altogether, 317 miles will be sailed in the Atlantic.

THE MED

On the 17th, the boats will be lift out of the water and put on trailers to be towed to S^t-Cyprien, the traditional first stopover in the Med where the Tour de France à la Voile has been welcomed for now 13 years.

It will be an early start on the 20th of July for the 57-mile race to Sète. Once again, Sète, which is a marina as well as a fisherman and commercial port, will display the Tour de France à la Voile flags for two days.

The next 90-mile leg will take the Mumm 30’s through the Rhome’s mouth and off Marseille to end in La Ciotat, stopover on the 22nd and 23rd of July. La Ciotat (Bouches du Rhône) authorities are willing to developing nautical activities and therefore have decided to welcome again the Tour de France à la Voile after many years.

A stopover in S^te-Maxime (Var) will allow the teams to taste the charm of sailing in S^t-Tropez Gulf on the 24th and 25th of July.

The last offshore leg will take the fleet to Antibes (Alpes Maritimes) where the 26th Tour de France will end. The final inshore race and postlogue will take place in the famous Riviera’s Baie des Anges.

In the Med, the Mumm 30’s fleet will cover 253 miles altogether.

TOWARDS A NEW RECORD Record #sailingrecord  ?

After having evened its 1988 record Record #sailingrecord of 40 boats last year, the Tour de France à la Voile will hopefully break a new record in 2003 with about 45 boats expected. Many of the 2002 entries (about 80&) are intending to come back in 2003 along with new campaigns rising in some yacht clubs such as Aquitaine Jeunes Talents, Douarnenez Douarnenez #Douarnenez Défi Jeunes etc.

There is also a sing of an increase of foreign teams with Italian Federico Michetti and skipper Vasco Vascotto having been the first team to register for the Tour de France à la Voile 2003. There should be an Australian team as well as a few British entries with one composed of some of the America’s Cup America's Cup #AmericasCup team sailors eager to come back.

The announcement of the Mumm 30 being used until 2008 as the Tour de France à la Voile official boat has also helped to enhance the dynamism of the Mumm 30 Class.