Orange II maxi-catamaran skippered by Bruno Peyron, along with a crew of 10, set off this morning at 08:13:29 (French time 06:13:29 GMT) for a record attempt on the Mediterranean, between Marseilles and Carthage (Tunisia).

The giant cat took advantage of the fact that the Mistral wind slightly decreased and left the Old Harbour this morning at 06:30 (local), towed by a fishing boat and the technical shore team.

Orange II crossed the line in winds which had not yet quite settled, in a low pressure regime that should induce a shift to the W/NW, with 25-30 knots of breeze, allowing the boat to sail to the south-east. The conditions are expected to be rough for the hours to come, especially when coming towards the southern tip of Sardinia.

In order to beat the record (18 hours, 46 minutes and 48 secs) set by Steve Fossett on PlayStation in May 2002, Bruno Peyron and his crew have to cross the finish line in Carthage tomorrow, September 25, before 02:59:17 (French time 00:59:17 GMT).

Orange II crew list

Bruno Peyron, skipper

Sebastien Audigane

Yves Le Blévec

Halvard Mabire

Lionel Lemonchois

Ludovic Alglaor

Marc Englebert

Tanguy de Lamotte

Stanislas Devorsine

Quentin Gilles

Arnaud De Bélinay (video)