Launched in 2019, the non-governmental organization The SeaCleaners Swiss – the French branch filed for bankruptcy last year – has set itself the mission of protecting the oceans around three axes: collecting waste at sea and upstream (river estuaries) via a fleet of collection boats, nets and floating barriers – concrete projects are underway in Malaysia and Indonesia – scientific research and raising public awareness.
With the latter in mind, the company has chosen to enlist the support of two ambassadors from the world of sailing. The first, Yves Courbon (58), director of a real estate agency in Nantes, has been racing as an amateur on the Class40 circuit since 2019; the second, Théo Masse, a 21-year-old student at Compiègne University of Technology who has been involved in match racing with Timothé Rossi’s crew in recent years, has his sights set on competing on the Figaro circuit in 2027, a race he’s been dreaming of for years.
“For me, raising awareness through sport is very important because it allows us to reach the general public and tell stories,” explains Benoit de Torcy, Managing Director of The SeaCleaners Swiss. As we work in the field of ocean protection, it’s quite natural that we turned to sailing.” How did the connection with the two ambassadors come about?
“I met Benoît and Alexandre (Aldebert, then sponsorship manager for The SeaCleaners) in 2022 through a mutual partner,” answers Yves Courbon. At the time, I was in the process of relaunching a four-year program with a view to the Route du Rhum 2026 (he had given up in 2022) and I was looking for a cause to promote. The contact went well, and the message about protecting the oceans obviously struck a chord with me as a lifelong sailor, so I agreed to take on this ambassadorial role.”
Théo Masse, from Loguivy-de-la-Mer (Côtes d’Armor), explains: “I wanted my sailing project to make sense, and the cause supported by The SeaCleaners really spoke to me, so I sent them an e-mail which, to my surprise, they quickly replied to. The activity stopped in France last year, but Benoit contacted me again at the end of 2024, because he wanted to relaunch this program and ,since January, I’m proud to be a SeaCleaners ambassador.”
“With Yves and Théo (who will be sailing together on the Fastnet in July on the former’s Class40, editor’s note), we have two very different profiles, which will enable us to appeal to different audiences,” says a delighted Benoit de Torcy, who has succeeded in getting the first partners on board to relaunch The SeaCleaners machine.
How is this partnership taking shape? On Yves Courbon’s Class40 Ocean Connect – Pogo S4, Erwan Le Draoulec’s ex-Everial – christened on Wednesday in Les Sables d’Olonne, where it will set sail on Saturday for Les Sables Horta (with Jean-Baptiste Ternon for the first double-handed leg), the visibility of the headsails is offered to The SeaCleaners and the association’s sponsors, while the project’s partners undertake to support the association financially.
The same will apply to Théo Masse when he gets his Figaro, the young engineering apprentice – who finishes an internship at CDK in Lorient in July – also intends to get personally involved: “The aim is really for me to be able, via my Figaro project, to finance with my partners concrete actions in favor of the oceans, but also to participate in them.”
Photo: Ocean Connect
