Sanxenxo,SpainIn Spain the so-called Under-30 rule opened up the way for internationally well-known sailors of prestige such as Ñeti Cuervas-Mons and Pablo Arrarte from Cantabria, who made their début in the Volvo Ocean Race at the age of 26 and 27 respectively. Carlos Hernández from Lanzarote was 27 when he joined MAPFRE to participate in his first Volvo Ocean Race, whilst Willy Altadill was 22.
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Today, Willy Altadill is the only one still under 30, and he admits that the rule has helped him enormously to take part in the race, and “to sail with people with immense experience, and to learn from them, as the last race enabled me to do”.
Moreover, having sailed extensively on larger boats, which for a sailor of his age, was already noteworthy in the last edition of the race, his experience on board MAPFRE will be of vital importance this time round,
“You obviously continue learning, but there is the additional experience gained from the last race, and this helps a lot when you get on board, as well as having sailed other boats, to know exactly where everything is, and more or less how it works. Then you evolve from there. It is another step forwards,” explains Altadill, son of the established round-the-world Spanish sailor Guillermo Altadill.
It also helps him to have a fuller, more rounded vision of this new race 2017-18, which starts in Alicante on 22nd October, as well as a notably mature, more knowledgeable attitude ahead of his second Volvo Ocean Race participation,
“More than anything else, to be more competitive, the decisive factor is to train hard, and I think we are doing things well. The important thing is not just having a good crew or for the boat to be ready. It is a whole series of things that have to be prepared before the start of the race in Alicante. Checking everything and making sure all the parameters are met so we are ready for the race start.”
“This time round the route is more complicated. It isn’t longer than the last time, but much tougher, as there are more wet and cold conditions. We are going to have to sail a lot more in the southern Ocean. We will also have to go up to Hong Kong after Australia and then back down again to reach Auckland. It’s going to be quite a lot more difficult”, Altadill replied, when asked about the new race route.
Naturally, his first experience has helped set more ambitious goals, as he explains,
“The aim this time round is firstly, to improve the result of the last race. Last time we gradually improved during the race, and this time we want to start off at a much higher level. Secondly, the goal is to fight to win, and I think we have a winning team. We must really use that to the very best of our ability.”
In the Volvo Ocean Race 2020-21 Willy will be 28, and as he himself admits,
“I will quite possibly have another chance in the future to be an Under-30 crew member”.
It is quite unlikely that there are other sailors in the world aged 28 who will be speaking about their third Volvo Ocean Race participation. But for now, it is one step at a time, and the focus remains on this coming edition of the race 2017-18.
