A complete platform for the end of September
In order to break new ground and push the boundaries, it is important to be ambitious and aim high. Wanting to launch in late September to enable the boat to compete in her first transatlantic a month later was very much in line with this mindset, as Cyril Dardashti explains: “We knew the timing was tight and ambitious from the outset. To draw up a build plan for Gitana 18, we had a solid base to work from in Gitana 17 but the new route we are carving out architecturally with this novel boat, particularly regarding the rudder and the foils, are worth spending the time on. As ever, our team has really stepped up to the plate and all the companies supporting us in this incredible project, starting with CDK Technologies, have done a colossal amount of work since construction started in January 2024, to meet the late-September deadline. Over 200 people have played their part in bringing Gitana 18 to life. The platform will be completed in the next few weeks but there is also a lesser-known aspect, which is integral to our sport and the innovation choices we have defended at Gitana for over 15 years. There is still some significant work to do on the systems for all the appendages and this element will not be completed as we first envisaged when we planned to take the start of the transatlantic race.”
Charles Caudrelier, sailor and philosopher
“I have every confidence in all the work that has been done by our team and you have to be able to look at the bigger picture with such projects,” says Charles Caudrelier. “As a competitor, I felt a sense of frustration at not being able to compete in this race but that soon passed. Launching a new and such an innovative boat a month before the start we clearly wouldn’t have been able to race the machine at her true potential.”
A land-based sailor for the past year almost as the old Maxi Edmond de Rothschild’s last race dates back to October 2024, the winner of the Route du Rhum naturally made no secret of his eagerness to put in his first tacks at the helm of Gitana 18. However, he also admits that he is enjoying getting involved in such a design: “This is the first time in my entire career that I’ve had the opportunity to follow a design project in this way from start to finish. It’s fascinating and extremely motivating. Of course, the days on land are a far cry from when I’m sailing and preparing for a course but the richness of this work is fantastic! It requires a massive amount of teamwork, which I adore, and we have to come up with solutions every day to put our highly innovative ideas and concepts into practice. There is absolutely zero chance of getting bored.”
Assuming the mantle of a legendary boat like Gitana 17 is not easy but the future Maxi Edmond de Rothschild has some very strong arguments in her favour and Charles Caudrelier cannot wait to showcase her innovations and her assertive character: “There was a very clear road map entrusted to us by our owner Ariane de Rothschild: do things better and differently! Aside from the beams, which come from Gitana 17’s former moulds, I confirm that everything is very different! Gitana’s team has gone to great lengths to try to challenge norms. Beyond the design, which is fundamental, we’re developing our own automatic pilot and our own electronics systems for this new boat. Gitana 18 is not a simple evolution and that will be obvious once the doors of the CDK yard finally open.”
Exit from the yard before Christmas
With the Transat Café l’Or no longer the objective as its racing debut, Gitana Team has managed to quickly revise its plan to get the best out of the situation and turn it into an opportunity. “Since we are not in a position to take the start of the Transat Café l’Or on 26 October, we’re going to use the next few months to finish off the Maxi Edmond de Rothschild and add the options we hadn’t initially envisaged being able to incorporate in the first version of the boat due to lack of time. She’s a new boat so the tweaking will be key and will need to be done as quickly as possible with a view to the main 2026 race meet: the Route du Rhum. However, we’re fortunate to be in a position to benefit from these additional innovations from 2026. Charles is keen to defend his title and Gitana Team is aiming to make history in the race,” notes Cyril Dardashti, director of the Gitana racing stable.
As such, a winter launch is now planned for the 28th boat in the Gitana Saga. She is due to emerge out of Lorient in early December and, weather permitting, the big reveal of the latest addition to the Gitana fleet is scheduled for Saturday 6 December.
Gitana 18, the new Maxi Edmond de Rothschild
The future five-arrow maxi-multihull, Gitana 18 has been in build in Lorient, Brittany, since January 2024 and her launch is now scheduled for the beginning of December 2025. This 32-metre-long giant will be 100% dedicated to flight whilst Gitana 17 was introduced as a versatile craft that was both Archimedean and capable of flight. Designed to get airborne earlier, in lighter winds as well as in heavier seas, this latest large oceanic multihull aims to combine the very best her predecessor has to offer whilst pushing the envelope even further and going into even more depth in terms of the innovation aspect. To do this, Gitana Team can draw on all the knowledge and the lessons learned over the past eight years, together with the 200,000 nautical miles sailed by the now legendary Gitana 17, which will forever be the first flying maxi-multihull to circumnavigate the globe in a race.
In numbers
23-month realisation process
50,000 study hours
200,000 hours of construction
Start of build: January 2024
Estimated launch: December 2025
Race name: Maxi Edmond de Rothschild
Given name: Gitana 18
LOA: 32 m
Beam: 23 m
Mast height: 38 m
Skipper: Charles Caudrelier
Naval architects: Gitana / Team Verdier design office
Yards / suppliers: CDK Technologies (platform), C3 Technologies (rudders), Re Fraschini (Foils), Southern Spars (mast and boom), Harken (deck hardware), North Sails (sails), Guelt (custom mechanical parts), Prot-Design 3D
Gitana 18’s artistic and graphic signature
On an invitation by Ariane de Rothschild
According to an original work by Florian and Michael Quistrebert
Hugo Vitrani (Curator Palais de Tokyo)
Jean-Baptiste Epron (design and realisation)
Les Ateliers d’Olivier (painting), Décosail (hulls), Atelier-sur-Mer (sails)