In France, forty entrants are preparing for the stat of the first "Transatlantic Double" yacht race to be run from Lorient in Brittany to Bermuda and back. The race begins on the 26th of May (Saturday) and is expected to last more than four weeks. It has been organised by the Lorient Nautical Centre.

SYNOPSIS: Lorient has four ports but it's this yacht basin which will gain international renown as both the start and finishing point for the first double trans-Atlantic race. Most of the entrants, like Michel Malinovsky in hi yacht "Kriter V" are from France. He will be racing with fellow countryman Pierre Lenormand, against a field of competitors which includes entrants from Britain, Canada, Switzerland, Belgium, Italy and West Germany. Among them, the veteran British yachtsman Chay Blyth in his trimaran "Great Britain IV".

A star entrant in the race is famous French yachtsman Eric Tabarly's new trimaran 'Paul Ricard'. The boat is an A-16 16.5 metre and Tabarly expects it to reach speeds of up to twenty-five knots. He hopes to complete the race in thirty days - and is one of the firm favourites to win. Tabarly has twice won English organised trans-Atlantic races. One difference between this event and other races is the use of a satellite monitoring system called Argos which enables scientists to study ocean currents and weather conditions while they plot the positions of the competitors.