Having retired from the Jules Verne Challenge on 3 March, Orange II, Bruno Peyron’s 120ft maxi-catamaran, has finally arrived back on shore. She reached her technical base in Lorient at 1015 this morning.

According to Peyron the boat will be taken out of the water within the next few days to allow an inspection of the starboard S Drive, which suffered damage and forced the crew to retire. Chatting about the current situation Peyron said: “It’s still too early to talk about the further developments of our campaign. For the time being, the Jules Verne clock stopped ticking as far as we’re concerned, and the whole crew is concentrating on organising the repairs necessary to put our giant back on the tracks, at 100 per cent of her potential.

“Our little trip to the Cape Verde Islands and back proved that the catamaran sails well, fast, and does not show any major flaw. She’s well conceived and fulfils our expectations. It’s too bad we had to turn back for such a minor problem, yet it was impossible for us to fix it at sea. It’s the tough reality of competition, and we have to accept it, to start again with even greater motivation. Now just stay tuned !”