44 candidates for the Vendée Globe 2024

by Vendee Globe 12 Oct 2023 17:30 BST 10 November 2024

44 candidates for the Vendée Globe 2024 © Vendée Globe

The Vendée Globe has never been so attractive. For the 10th edition of the non-stop, non-assisted, single-handed round the world race, 44 skippers have applied. A record.

The values of adventure, sharing, commitment and surpassing oneself are more than ever at the heart of the aspirations of the public.

The diversity of candidates makes the race so exciting!

Among these 44 candidates, as in every edition, there is a great diversity of profiles. That's what makes the Vendée Globe so special: each sailor has a unique story to tell.

There are a number of newcomers, the 18 'rookies'. The youngest skipper, Violette Dorange, is now just 22 ! She is due to compete in her first round-the-world race aboard the boat on which Jean Le Cam completed the 2020 Vendée Globe. King Jean, the emblematic face and oldest skipper in the race, should be lining up at the start for the 6th time, on his brand new IMOCA with straight daggerboards, which has just been launched.

Among the 6 candidates - as many as the 2020 record - Sam Davies, Justine Mettraux and Clarisse Crémer have high ambitions at the helm of high-performance boats and are looking forward to taking part in the battle for the podium.

Damien Seguin, the first disabled skipper to complete a Vendée Globe in 2020-2021, should be back alongside Jingkun Xu, ayoung Chinese skipper with an arm amputation. Their candidacy highlights that Vendée Globe is also an inspiring demonstration of inclusion.

A race more international than ever

The internationalisation of the Vendée Globe is reaching new levels: applications are coming in from the four corners of the globe ! If 2020 was a record year in this respect, 2024 is once again, proof that the trend is set to continue. The candidates include 16 international skippers, representing more than a third of the entries, compared with 12 in 2020. In addition, the 11 nationalities represented are spread across 4 of the Globe's 5 continents. This internationalisation goes hand in hand with the diversification of profiles, giving the race an extremely rich multicultural aspect.

Sailors increasingly committed

From social action to environmental protection and medical research, the Vendée Globe is an opportunity for more and more skippers to use their achievements to support causes that are close to their hearts. There are more than 30 causes supported by the sailors. Some, like Tanguy Le Turquais with Lazare or Manuel Cousin with Coup de Pouce, have named their boat after the charity they support, to give them maximum visibility. Others are taking a different approach, like Thomas Ruyant and Sam Goodchild, who are sailing under the common banner of the "We sail for people and planet" collective, which works to help people and the planet.

The Initiatives-Coeur project with skipper Sam Davies enables children with heart malformations to be operated in France when this is impossible in their own country. Their ambition is to save 500 children by the end of the next Vendée Globe. Maxime Sorel, skipper of the new IMOCA V and B - Monbana - Mayenne, has been deeply involved with "Vaincre la Mucoviscidose" for nearly 10 years, an association he has promoted through his various exploits, at sea during Vendée Globe and on land when he climbed the highest peak in the world, Mount Everest.

40 places at the Start, 10 November 2024

For the 2020 edition, 37 skippers applied. In the end, only 33 took part in the race.

To find out which 40 competitors will set sail on 10 November 2024, we will have to wait for the final qualifying and selection race: the New York Vendée - Les Sables d'Olonne, which will start from the United States on 29 May 2024.

How to take part?

Alain Leboeuf, President of the Vendée Globe: "I'm delighted with the diversity of the applications for the 2024 edition. Once again, we will be welcoming sailors with extraordinary backgrounds and personalities from all over the world, ready to take on the immensity of the oceans and make their dreams come true. The growing number of entries from international skippers demonstrates the global reach of our race and shows just how much it inspires people beyond their borders. It is this human diversity that makes the Vendée Globe such an extraordinary adventure. "

Key figures:

10th edition
6 women (vs 6 in 2020)
16 international skippers (vs 12 in 2020)
11 nationalities represented: France, United Kingdom, Switzerland, Germany, Italy, Belgium, Hungary, Japan, China, USA, New Zealand (vs 9 in 2020)
18 rookies (vs 20 in 2020)
30 causes supported
14 new IMOCAs (vs 9 in 2020)
2 handisport skippers

Candidates: