The Vendée Globe is currently the world’s biggest solo, non-stop, unassisted round-the-world sailing race. The event followed in the footsteps of the Golden Globe, which, in 1968, pioneered the first circumnavigation of this kind via the three capes (Good Hope, Leeuwin and Horn). Of the nine pioneers who set sail in 1968, only one managed to return to Falmouth, the major port in Cornwall, England. On 6 April 1969, after 313 days at sea, the Briton Robin Knox-Johnston finally reached the finish line. Twenty years later, it was the sailor Philippe Jeantot who, following his double victory in the BOC Challenge (a solo round-the-world race with stopovers), proposed the idea of a new round-the-world race, to be sailed solo, but… non-stop! The Vendée Globe was born. On 26 November 1989, thirteen sailors set off on the first edition, which would last more than three months. Only seven of them would return to Les Sables d’Olonne.
The theoretical route taken by sailors around the world covers a distance of 45,000 kilometres, or 24,300 nautical miles. This monumental voyage was completed in a record time of 74 days and 3 hours during the eighth edition of the Vendée Globe, in 2016–2017. Essentially, this global voyage is a journey through the seasons, beginning with a descent down the Atlantic, a crossing of the Indian and Pacific Oceans, and then a return up the Atlantic. The itinerary includes a start from Les Sables d’Olonne in mid-autumn, a passage through the Southern Oceans in the height of the southern summer, and a return to the Vendée in winter.
A single man or woman on board, from departure to arrival, the sole arbiter of their course and their sleep.
No stops, no anchorage: the boat will not touch land again until it returns to Les Sables d’Olonne.
Repairs, damage, weather: every skipper relies solely on their own resources and equipment.
From Les Sables d’Olonne to the trade winds, crossing the Doldrums and then the long glide towards the Southern Hemisphere.
The top teams from the round-robin stage face each other in knockout matches.
The battles are heating up: every move could open or close the door to the final.
Back north along the Atlantic coast, to the Sables-d’Olonne channel and the visitor centre.
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