The cyclist François Pervis, seven times world champion on the track, has been included in the French challenge for the next America’s Cup, as a sailor responsible for generating the power necessary for the operation of the sailboat, his new team announced on Thursday.
“I am extremely proud to join the group (…) I see some similarities between my background as a track cyclist (…) and the AC75. It’s about speed, carbon, power, marginal gains, aerodynamics, surpassing oneself. Everything I love,” rejoiced the 38-year-old from Mayen.
The hydraulic systems of the AC75, a 23-meter-long monohull used during the next America’s Cup at the end of 2024 in Barcelona, are not activated thanks to the energy generated by machines during the regattas but thanks to athletes producing watts on bikes.
Pervis will therefore be part of the rear cell of the French challenge, also called “power group”, already made up of sailors Olivier Herlédant, Tim Lapauw, crossfitter Maxime Guyon, rowers Germain Chardin, Antoine Nougarede and the Verhoeven brothers.
During regattas, this crew is supplemented by a quartet of sailors. For the French Orient Express challenge, these are skippers Quentin Delapierre and Kevin Peponnet and trimmers Matthieu Vandame and Jason Saunders.
François Pervis, a French track cyclist specializing in sprint and particularly kilometer events, has seven track world champion titles (four in the kilometer, two in the keirin and one in individual speed).
He also has a bronze medal at the 2016 Olympic Games and holds the world record for the kilometer (56 seconds 303).
During the first preliminary regatta of the America’s Cup in mid-September in Vilanova (Spain), the French of Orient Express finished in 3rd position in the general classification, out of the six challenges entered in the race to the ewer of silver, the oldest sports trophy in the world.
Team New Zealand, the “defender” (title holder) will know its opponent for the Cup on October 6, 2024 at the end of a month of regattas between the five other participating teams, the “challengers”.
From October 12, the victorious challenger and defender will compete in the waters of Barcelona for the trophy.
