IMOCA OCEAN MASTERS
Featured
Friday 20 JanuaryTHOMSON CLAIMS SECOND IN THE 8TH EDITION OF THE VENDÉE GLOBE RACE
Read more
Discover the Skippers
THE VENDÉE GLOBE
THE PINNACLE EVENT OF THE IMOCA OCEAN MASTERS SERIES
The Vendée Globe is still the only non-stop solo round the world race without assistance.
The first seven editions of what the public refers to as the Everest of the seas, have enabled 138 sailors to line up at the start of the Vendée Globe, while only 71 have managed to cross the finishing line. This figure alone expresses the huge difficulty of this global event, where sailors face icy cold conditions, mountainous waves and leaden skies in the Southern Ocean. The Vendée Globe is above all a voyage to the ends of the sea and deep down into the sailor’s soul. It has been won by some of the greatest names in sailing: Titouan Lamazou, Alain Gautier, Christophe Auguin, Vincent Riou and François Gabart. Only one sailor has won it twice: Michel Desjoyeaux, in 2001 and 2009. The race record is held by François Gabart with a time of 78 days.
The eighth Vendée Globe will set sail from les Sables d’Olonne on Sunday 6th November 2016.
Read MoreIMOCA Ocean Masters
ISAF WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES FOR IMOCA60 RACE TEAMS
In 2014, the IMOCA World Championship has been rechristened IMOCA Ocean Masters. This new name reflects the desire to internationalise and further develop the circuit – a circuit already recognised as the world’s foremost for shorthanded offshore racing.
This series is based on a number of world famous oceanic races in which, for several decades, the sporting endeavours and heroic achievements of its participants have, frequently, turned skippers into superstars. The Vendée Globe, Barcelona World Race, Route du Rhum, Transat Jacques Vabre, Rolex Fastnet Race…around the world, across the Atlantic, double-handed or solo, ….all of these challenging events attract a strong media following, and huge crowds at start and finish race villages.
Read more