The 32-metre Maxi Edmond de Rothschild offshore racing trimaran Gitana 18 has suffered damage during her first transatlantic race at the ongoing Route du Rhum - Destination Guadeloupe, which kicked off on Sunday, 1 November.
According to the Gitana team, skipper Charles Caudrelier alerted the shore team to damage on the port foil of the trimaran at 4.00am this morning (3 November). The incident occurred during downwind sailing, 400 miles north of the archipelago of Azores, an autonomous region of Portugal, in strong three-metre seas and 20-25 knots of wind.
At the time of the incident, Gitana 18 was lying in fourth place in the Ultim category.
No injuries have been reported, with the racing team claiming the situation is under control. Caudrelier is said to be currently performing necessary operations to make the damaged foil secure, while more extensive investigations are underway to determine the extent of the damage. Meanwhile, the routing team is studying the options available.
The incident comes months after the new build was officially launched from the team’s shed in Lorient, Brittany, in April - though she was unveiled to the world for the first time in early December 2025. A month after her launch, she undertook her debut sail in March, which, according to the Gitana team, "started a countdown of less than eight months" until the race.
Ahead of the November race, a statement from the Gitana team read: "The Route du Rhum – Destination Guadeloupe was on the programme for the new Maxi Edmond de Rothschild before the first layers of carbon fibre had even been laid for its construction. Making it to the start of the most famous transatlantic race less than eight months after this highly innovative trimaran’s maiden sail was an achievement in itself."
Described by the team as a “polymorphic creature”, Gitana 18 features "revolutionary" rudders and a Y-shaped pendulum appendage of "unprecedented dimensions" inspired by America’s Cup flying monohulls.
She is also fitted with a redesigned central daggerboard on the central hull and a reimagined rig with adjustable spreaders, which allows the 38-metre mast to bend and modify mainsail power - a world first at this scale.
BOAT International stepped aboard the radical racing trimaran earlier this year.
Read More/Built to fly: How the radical Gitana 18 racing trimaran was engineered to fly across the ocean