Monday, 6 April: Jean-Baptiste Botti joined an elite list of riders to ‘tame’ the toughest offshore race in the world after winning the 18th running of the Karujet in Guadeloupe.
The rider from Porto Vecchio took victory on his fifth attempt to win the Karujet, winning stage 5 and coming home in fourth in the final stage to lift the title. “After winning stage 5 and seeing that Alex had a problem I just took it easy the whole way. I knew I just needed to finish the final stage with a decent time, so I didn’t risk any trouble out there. Happy, very happy.” said Botti.
Last year’s winner Ugo Fidelin rounded out a frustrating event winning the final stage but could only manage 13th overall. “It’s been a fun event. It didn’t really start well for me but I had a lot of fun. It’s great to end the event with a win here, I’m happy with that.”
Francois Medori capped a great fightback after his tumble on day two, moving up from 24th to finish the event as runner-up. “I came here to win, but runner-up isn’t so bad. The water was pretty rough, the fight was hard. After I saw Alex [Barret] back on the beach, I preferred to just manage the race without pushing too hard so I could guarantee a second place at least, because I knew Botti was still in the race. It’s nice to be on the podium at a Karujet, I’m quite content.”
Alain Tarzia produced another series of consistent performances to take the final spot on the podium for the second time in two years. “Third place again. I had a bad start, losing some time there, but ended it well, and I’m happy with another great event. Two podiums in a row is just great.”
There was heartbreak for Alex Barret who had topped the points table until stage 5, his hopes ending with mechanical problems, dropping 10 minutes and losing the lead to Botti. He faced more issues in the final stage and unable to finish, ending the event in seventh in the final standings.
Stage 5:
1. JB Botti 2. V Karam 3. U Fidelin 4. K Carlini 5. F Arnoux 6. A Tarzia
Stage 6:
1. U Fidelin 2. C Warner 3. V Karam 4.JB Botti 5. F Medori 6.K Carlini
Overall:
1. JB Botti (fra) 5:49:52.899
2. F Medori (fra) + 11:47.436s
3. A Tarzia (fra) + 16:07.285s
4. K Carlini (fra) + 17:10.433s
5. V Karam (gua) + 24:57.928s
6. A Granger (gua) + 37:06423s
Results:
http://aquabike.net/results/2015/france-guadeloupe
For further information:
Photos: Yann Couvrand