3 questions to Antoine Albeau

03/06/2022

At almost 50 years old, Antoine Albeau remains stainless and takes the 2nd place in the Défi Wind, only a few months after his victory in the Défi Wind SuperStars. To Windsurfjournal.com, he looks back on this event and his half-century that is coming soon!

Windsurfjournal.com: Winner of the Défi Wind SuperStars last autumn, 2nd in this 20th edition of the Défi Wind, it's hard to get more consistent... How does this result inspire you?
Antoine Albeau: I'm very happy because I've been very busy the last few years and I didn't arrive ready as I would have liked. This year for the 20th edition, I was much more prepared but with the NeilPryde/JP Australia team, we received the new sails and boards 2 days before the event which is good but not really the best way to prepare. So I only had the 2 days before the event to test them and prepare them as well as possible. The equipment is top notch, which meant that everything went well. I didn't have any problems with the equipment, which allowed me to concentrate on my sailing and tactical choices. I just got the wrong sail when I went out in 4.4 foil on the penultimate run.

WJ: The battle between the fins and the foils was highly anticipated and did not disappoint. What lessons have you learned from this confrontation in Gruissan between the two?
AA : I don't think it should be seen as a confrontation, the foil is a new generation of support and will be faster in certain conditions if you have the right equipment for the conditions in which you use it. It's true that in strong winds, not many people have the right equipment yet, so there will always be some fin riders and some foil riders. Sailing with a foil is much less tiring over long distances. For example, with fin, if you want to go fast, you have to develop a maximum of power to keep your average speed high. In foil, to keep a high speed without taking too much risk of crashing, you produce less effort, and you have a very high average speed. It's like riding on the highway on cruise control. Moreover, on courses like the Défi Wind, there is always an edge where you have to gu upwind for a long time, or you can be swept away by the mass of competitors or the chop. In foiling, this hardly bothers you and there again, it's an advantage.

WJ: On June 17th, you will celebrate your 50th birthday, a "symbolic" birthday. But considering your results and your commitment, all this does not seem to have really a hold on you?
AA: Yes, Paola, my wife, is organising a little party at home, so it's great, we'll be with family and friends, it'll be great. But it's true that, as you say, my 50 years do not really have a hold on me in view of my results the last 6 months. I almost feel like I'm going back for another 10 years or so! Also, my 2 sons, Alani and Adriel will keep me young, that's for sure! I would like to move on to other projects like our Zephir Project and all the long distance events as I feel more motivated on events like that. I will be on the PWA events this year anyway. I'll also be at my sailing school all summer so I'll see everyone who wants to sail (windsurfing, wing, sup, catamaran, Optimist) this summer on the Ile de Ré, so don't hesitate to come and say hello to me on my wonderful island on the Atlantic coast.