As they approached Gibraltar on Thursday, the members of Team JAJO, which is taking part in the last leg of The Ocean Race, a round the world race in stages and by crew, were surprised to see two killer whales swoop down on their VO65.
They approached the boat before starting to play with the hull and the rudders of the boat, even giving a few blows. Both amused but also very worried, the skippers started hitting the deck of the boat with objects in an attempt to scare away the two sea monsters who eventually got tired of the presence of the VO65 and took the wide.
“Two killer whales rushed at us and they started hitting the boat. It was impressive to see these magnificent animals, but it was also a dangerous time for the team. We lowered the sails and slowed the boat down as quickly as possible and luckily after a few attacks they cleared away. It was a scary moment”, commented one of the crew members, relieved to see that the boat had not been damaged.
At the end of May, the French navigator Sébastien Destremau, then in the Cape of Trafalgar area, had come under attack from at least eight killer whales for almost an hour. “An hour under their battering, it was very impressive and we were very scared,” said the shocked Mediterranean aboard his boat Lancelot. “We saw them coming from quite a distance and we immediately understood that this time it was for us,” he commented.