Every four years since 1978, the top sailing professionals have met in Saint-Malo (Brittany), in France's far west, to cover the 6,500-kilometre route across the Atlantic. The regatta is a one-handed competition in which only one person is on board at a time during the entire tour. The name of the regatta goes back to the legendary pirates who brought the rum to Europe from their trips to the Caribbean. The start of the regatta is at Grouin-Landspitze not far from Saint-Malo, destination is the port of Pointe-à-Pitre on the French Caribbean island of Guadeloupe. As early as 24 October 2018, the 100 athletes will arrive in their boats in Saint-Malo on the northern coast of Brittany. With the opening ceremony the corsair city starts the festival week in the harbour with many events around sailing. As in recent years, more than 2 million visitors are expected.