In the skin of a Vendée Globe participant

Open Ocean is the story of Didac Costa, a Spanish firefighter that puts everything on the line to compete in the most extreme sporting event of the planet - the Vendée Globe. 

Open Ocean debuted at the cinema Phenomena, in Barcelona, this past 22nd of october. The documentary narrates the experience of Didac Costa on the sailing competition, and the debut received support from friends, sailors and the audience who could experience these incredible images of the only Spanish sailor in the regatta. 

Testimonials indicate the documentary is filled with drama as several spectators had to hold back a few tears of emotion. Amongst spectators we could see Marc Gasol, the famous basketball player, as well as actor Pablo Hermoso. 

“I didn’t want to make a film that was just strong winds and giant waves, I wanted to create a heartfelt and moving testimony about the sacrifice and excitement it takes to pull off the world’s toughest race.” -Nathan Siegel, movie director.

What is the Vendée Globe Race?

The Vendee Globe is the only solo sailing race that circumnavigates the world without assistance and non-stop. The event followed in the wake of the Golden Globe that initiated the first circumnavigation of this type via the three capes (Good Hope, Leeuwin and Horn) in 1968. 

Sir William Robert Patrick Knox-Johnston was the first sailor to navigate non-stop alone around the world back in 1969. Now the Vendée Globe puts together every 4 years 33 contenders that depart from Les Sables-d’Olonne to take part in this life changing competition. 

44.996.2 kilometers or 24.296 miles, this is the circumference of the Earth. This distance was accomplished in 74 days and 3 hours during the last edition of the Vendée Globe 2020. The planetary voyage sails down the Atlantic, crosses the Indian and Pacific oceans before sailing back up the Atlantic to reach Les Sables d’Olonne again. 

Participants leave single-handed in mid-autumn and spend the New Year onboard. Solo racers have to deal with wind, waves, swell and ice. In its latest edition, Yannick Bestaven crossed the finish line first.

Who is Didac Costa?

Didac Costa, born the 22nd of December 1980 in Barcelona, Spain, is a yachtsman that competes in ocean racing. He is the first Catalan and second Spanish to finish the Vendée Globe and the first Spanish yachtsman to complete two IMOCA 60 class round-the-world races: solo in the Vendée Globe and double-handed at the Barcelona World Race 2014-2015. 

Costa participated aboard One Planet One Ocean in the Vendée Globe Race. He will also participate on the 7th of November in the Transat Jacques Vabre Normandie Le Havre 2021 in Time For Oceans. In this competition, he will travel 5800 nautical miles together with French Stephan le Diraison crossing the Brazilian archipelago of Fernando de Noronha before heading to Martinique. 

Didac encountered several hardships during the 2016 edition of the Vendée Globe, as his monohull was struck by lightning just a month before the start of the race. However, being accustomed to fire, Didac overcame the mishaps and ended up in 14th position. In the 2020/2021 edition, he ended up 20th. 

The documentary can be watched in festivals and selected cinemas from December onwards and in streaming from spring 2022 onwards. To be up-to-date with more news like this, come sail on our social media: Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.