Groupe Apicil
Foiling IMOCA 60 designed by VPLP and Guillaume Verdier, launched in 2015 as Safran II, later Des Voiles et Vous!, then Maître CoQ IV (winner of the 2020-2021 Vendée Globe) and finally Groupe Apicil.
Identity card
- LaunchedThe moment a new boat touches the water for the first time.See in the glossary
- 2015
- ShipyardThe company that builds the boat, or carries out major work on it.See in the glossary
- CDK Technologies
- Designer(s)The designer of the boat: hull shape, appendages, structure, sail plan.See in the glossary
- Guillaume Verdier,VPLP Design
- DesignThe drawing a boat is built from; sister-ships share the same design.See in the glossary
- Guillaume Verdier IMOCA 2015
- GenerationBuild period: boats of the same generation often share the same technical choices.See in the glossary
- Not provided
- Hull typeHow many hulls the boat has: monohull, catamaran or trimaran.See in the glossary
- MonohullA boat with a single hull, kept upright by the weight of its keel.See in the glossary
- StatusWhere the boat stands today: active, retired from racing, lost, in a museum or converted.See in the glossary
- ActiveStill sailing.See in the glossary
- SponsorsA company or institution that funds a boat, a team or a skipper in exchange for visibility.See in the glossary
- Groupe Apicil · Title sponsorThe company that gives its name to the boat or team.See in the glossary · since 2022Safran · Title sponsorThe company that gives its name to the boat or team.See in the glossary · 2015 – 2017Maître CoQ · Title sponsorThe company that gives its name to the boat or team.See in the glossary · 2019 – 2022
- OwnersThe person or organisation that owns the boat, which does not necessarily race it.See in the glossary
- Kaïros · June 2017 – January 2019
- Operating teamThe organisation running one or more racing boats: technical crew, logistics, partners.See in the glossary
- Kaïros · since 2016
- SuppliersA company that supplies part of the boat's equipment: sails, mast, electronics, foils, keel, energy.See in the glossary
- Not provided
- Sail numberThe identifier printed on the mainsail: a country code followed by a number.See in the glossary
- Not provided
- FlagThe country the boat is registered in.See in the glossary
- France
- Keel typeThe weighted fin under a monohull's hull, which stops it drifting sideways and keeps it upright.See in the glossary
- CantingA keel that swings sideways, to windward, to better counter heeling.See in the glossary
- FoilsAn underwater wing that lifts the boat so it drags less in the water and goes faster.See in the glossary
- Not provided
- Hull lengthLength of the hull alone, without the bowsprit or protruding appendages.See in the glossary
- 18.28m
- Max beamMaximum width of the boat; for a multihull, from one float to the other.See in the glossary
- 5.8m
- DraftHow deep the boat sits: from the waterline to the lowest point of the keel.See in the glossary
- 4.5m
- Air draftHeight of the boat above the water: from the waterline to the top of the mast.See in the glossary
- 29m
- DisplacementThe mass of the boat ready to sail, equal to the mass of water it displaces.See in the glossary
- 6,500kg
- Upwind sail areaSail area carried when the boat sails towards the wind: mainsail and headsail.See in the glossary
- 310m²
- Downwind sail areaSail area carried with the wind on the beam or from behind, with the big headsails.See in the glossary
- 550m²
History
Safran II is a foiling IMOCA 60 designed by VPLP and Guillaume Verdier for the Safran team, in partnership with Team Banque populaire, sharing its hull shape with Banque populaire VIII. Built by CDK Technologies in Port-la-Forêt and launched on 5 March 2015, it belongs to the first IMOCA generation fitted with foils instead of daggerboards.
Skippered by Morgan Lagravière, it took second place in the 2015 Record SNSM with Nicolas Lunven, and in March 2016 the Kaïros team was given its technical and sporting management. Lagravière retired from the 2016-2017 Vendée Globe after 17 days with rudder damage caused by a collision with a floating object.
Safran withdrew in June 2017 and Kaïros bought the boat, renaming it Des Voiles et Vous!. Lagravière and Éric Péron finished third in the IMOCA class of the 2017 Transat Jacques-Vabre.
In January 2019 Yannick Bestaven bought it with the backing of Team Maître CoQ and renamed it Maître CoQ IV. After a refit in La Rochelle (foils optimised and made more reliable), he won the 2020-2021 Vendée Globe on corrected time, having helped in the rescue of Kevin Escoffier.
It was later bought by Damien Seguin and Groupe Apicil and has raced as Groupe Apicil since 2022.
Names and sail numbers
What the boat was called and the numbers it sailed under.
Life timeline
Names, skippers, shipyards and races, in one place.
Name
- Podium
- Finished
- Retired
- Yard work
Detailed timeline
2022
Sale · 2022
Bought by Damien Seguin and Groupe Apicil
The boat becomes Groupe Apicil.
SkipperThe sailor in command of the boat, responsible for it in the race.See in the glossary · since 2022
Damien SeguinRenamed
Groupe Apicil
2021
Event · 2021
Wins the 2020-2021 Vendée Globe
Yannick Bestaven wins in 80 d 3 h 44 min 46 s after the 10 h 15 min time compensation.
2020
Event · 30 November 2020
Diverted to rescue Kevin Escoffier
During the Vendée Globe, Yannick Bestaven helped search for the shipwrecked Kevin Escoffier (PRB) and received a time compensation.
2019
Sale · January 2019
Bought by Yannick Bestaven and renamed Maître CoQ IV
Purchased with the backing of Team Maître CoQ ahead of the 2020-2021 Vendée Globe.
SkipperThe sailor in command of the boat, responsible for it in the race.See in the glossary · 2019 – 2022
Yannick BestavenRenamed
Maître CoQ IV
2017
Sale · June 2017
Bought by Kaïros and renamed Des Voiles et Vous!
After Safran's withdrawal, the Kaïros team bought the boat.
Renamed
Des Voiles et Vous !
Co-skipperThe second sailor of a pair, sharing the running of the boat with the skipper.See in the glossary · 2017 – 2018
Éric Péron
2015
Launch · 5 March 2015
Safran II launched
Safran team's first foiling-generation IMOCA, built by CDK Technologies.
SkipperThe sailor in command of the boat, responsible for it in the race.See in the glossary · March 2015 – 2018
Morgan LagravièreLaunched as
Safran II
Unknown date
Build · until 2015
CDK TechnologiesBuild of the IMOCA Safran II by CDK Technologies at Port-la-Forêt.
Page reliability
4 sources · updated 6 Oct 2026