One year ago with no sponsor and no money it was an unhappy Pep Costa who was forced to sit out the 2023 La Solitaire du Figaro Paprec. After impressive debut races in 2021 – 3rd rookie - and 2022 which had highlighted his promise and talent, a harsh reality bit at the start of the 2023 season when he had to hand back the keys to his Figaro Beneteau 3.
The days were dark for the Catalan sailor who originates from Castelldelfels west of Barcelona, and who is still only 25 years old. But foregoing that 2023 race may yet prove to be something of a blessing in disguise. Virtually since then his career has gone from strength to strength. Recognition of his talent, ability, drive and bright personality has seen him in constant demand as crew, co-skipper, skipper and also increasingly on shore weather routing.
Earlier this season he was asked to skipper the Baie de Quiberon/Orlabay Figaro Beneteau 3 on the Tour Voile and other crewed races – leading to multiple leg wins and second place overall on the Tour Voile. That agreement has allowed him to use the boat for the season’s solo races including this La Solitaire du Figaro Paprec. And then came winning the highly contested selection to be VSF’s skipper on a top Class40 programme which will take him through at least through to the next Route du Rhum Destination Guadeloupe. Although it is a Class40 campaign, the automobile glass and windscreen company which is new to sailing, offered him the chance to compete on La Solitaire du Figaro Paprec in their colours.
“There were some painful times. It was complicated back then. And it all came on the back of my last La Solitaire with very little money so it was a painful. I consider I sailed quite well in my last La Solitaire and then with no money and no sponsors It was really tough.” Says Costa on the dock in Rouen where the 2024 La Solitaire du Figaro Paprec fleet are assembled. “But it was like one month after I gave up the boat opportunities started coming. First I did the Defi Atlantic with Erwan Le Draoulec on Everial and won the last leg, then I learned so much on the Ocean 50 with Thibault Vauchel coming second on the Sailing Pro Tour. After that the Tour de Bretagne with Elodie Bonafous and then routing for the Transat Jacques Vabre and then with SVR on the Arkéa Ultim Challenge Brest with Jean Yves Bernot that was an all just incredible.”
But, he recalls “All the time you have this thought in your head ‘I wish I had my own sponsor for my own project’ And then at the beginning of this year Daniel Souben proposed I be the skipper of Orlabay on the Tour Voile and that was the beginning of an adventure, then I felt I was close to getting back on La Solitaire du Figaro Paprec as I had a boat and sails and then I won the selection for VSF and they proposed they come with me on La Solitaire and that was an amazing moment. They wanted to do three years of Class40 and everyone had to respond. I won. I think that was the best moment of my life, having a proper sponsor and I know what I will be doing for nearly the next four years, at least to the end of 2027!”
Looking back Costa says, “The fact I could not do it last year actually has made me a better sailor because I got so much experience last year, sailing so many more boats with a lot of good skippers. So sailing with Thibault and Erwan and the likes of Yoann Richomme. These guys have been great for me. Thanks to these skippers I sailed a lot, learned a lot and had one of my best seasons of my life. I gained so much confidence and I am so much stronger and hungrier than ever.”
Looking at what lies ahead he says he feels no pressure on this race, “I don’t know what my exact level in the fleet is but I know if I sail properly and make good decisions I can do well. Now I know better how to look at things and keep them in perspective and know how to make good decisions. And the first two years I really had very little money and so it is hard to race like that. Mentally it is tough and hard to perform when you have little money so I feel the pressure is off.”
And now he has a boat he knows well, “ I sailed crewed on the Tour Voile on Orlabay -we won a lot of legs sailing with super talented guys like Basile Bourgnon who was second on La Solitaire last year, we had a great team. That helped my built the confidence and now I have that same boat. I know my marks exactly, super precise, so that diminishes the pressure on you because you are not worrying of your sails are trimmed well.”
Target: a nice race And he is eager to get going, “In the Figaro I have never been so calm before a race. I feel so confident in myself and happy to now put myself out there. I know deep in myself I want to do a nice race and that is the most important thing.”
This will be one of the toughest races for many year with three very long stages, “ There are three legs of over 600 miles each and so it will be super important to stay fully focused until the end of each leg. I think I like the long legs and they are much more offshore and open than I remember, going back and forwards across Biscay a few times. It a little more offshore and I like that. It will be a bit more open in terms of options.”
And going to his native Spain is a little bonus, even if he will – inevitably – spend most of his time sleeping and recovering there “ I am so excited to be going to Gijon. It is great to be going to Spain to have a nice finish in there and maybe eat some Spanish food, but the hard truth is that the legs are so long and you need all the time to recover you have so little time, you need to just rest. I don’t think I will get time to go exploring!”