Thursday 28 March 2002, par Jean Perez

Nowadays, Anne has taken part in seventeen transat races. She has got a catamaran with Christophe Houdet that she brought back from Guadeloupe where she lived for six years by sailing in winter around the islands.

She has opened a sailing school for sport catamaran's in the Moines island. Anne has the sailing sport educator Certificate and, more surprisingly, she has the shipping cargo licence. She has succeeded in teaching sailing passion to her children : her daughter Djamina (18) and her son Aubin (15) attend sailing classes and federal training.

It is the simple story of someone who is fond of the sea. But Anne needed something else to be quiet : she needed stress, sensations that competition can only gives you. She took part in the last "Route du Rhum" on an old patched up Open "multihull 50 foot". She started the race with a fissured mast. Some people who knew her thought it was unreasonable. But Anne is wilful, she had got ready for this race and she will not give up at the last moment.

However, she reached Pointe à Pitre with precarious conditions. A feat which was unnoticed but, during this race, Anne had proved she was a real sailor.

She took part in the "Québec - Saint-Malo" race in 2000. This time, it was a new experience with a crew. Since then, Anne had just one idea in mind : sailing again throughout competition.

" I like convoying", she says , "i do it three or four times a year, but competition is another thing?. She invested her last euros in a "open 50 foot ". She' s going to sail alone across North Atlantic on a multihull boat in order to hold the record. The only reference is the record hold by Laurent Bourgnon in 7 days and 20 hours. Then, in November, she will start her second "Route du Rhum", hoping that she will win in her category this time.

"My new trimaran cannot be compared with the previous one. This time, I?ve got a boat to win. I'm sure of that ", she says.

It is an ambitious programme which will only stop in 2005, with the "Jacques Vabre Transat" ( 2003 ), the "Europe 1 New Man star", the " Quebec ? Saint-malo " race ( 2004 ) and this crazy project to sail round the world against winds and streams with another sailor.

However, she will fight for the recognition of this "Open 50 foot" category. The " Open 60 foot" have their championship in multihull as well as monohull boats with an established programme.

" The 50 foot " are still the poor parents of these categories. They fight against the "60 foot" unequally. Anne Caseneuve does not agree with this situation. But this fight will not be the easiest.

However, Anne has never sought for easy things. On the contrary, Anne comes out throughout adversity. Everybody knows that.