After a month on an attempt at the Jules Verne Trophy, Sodebo Ultim 3 maintains a lead
by Sodebo Ultim 3 15 Jan 17:47 GMT
15 January 2026
Sodebo Ultim 3 on the Jules Verne Trophy attempt © Team Sodebo
For exactly one month now, the crew of Sodebo Ultim 3 has been dedicated to their attempt at the Jules Verne Trophy. Having set sail on December 15th, Thomas Coville, Benjamin Schwartz, Frédéric Denis, Pierre Leboucher, Léonard Legrand, Guillaume Pirouelle, and Nicolas Troussel have achieved record times at the three great capes (Good Hope, Leeuwin, and Horn) and have also set new records.
They are currently sailing up the South Atlantic and are expected to reach the equator next Monday morning. In order to break the round-the-world record, held since 2017 by IDEC Sport (40 days, 23 hours, and 30 minutes), the "Sodeboys" must reach Ushant before Sunday, January 25th at 8:31 PM. And they intend to give it their all!
This is another symbolic milestone. On Wednesday, Sodebo Ultim 3 crossed the trajectory established a few weeks earlier during the descent of the Atlantic. "That means we were able to circumnavigate Antarctica in 28 days, which gives you an idea of our speed since the start," smiled Thomas Coville. Even though the weather conditions forced them to take a route 10% longer than IDEC Sport in 2017 (1,570 miles/2,900 km today), the crew remains ahead of the Jules Verne Trophy holder.
Since the start, Sodebo Ultim 3 has maintained an average speed of 30 knots (56 km/h). However, the skipper doesn't want to dwell on it and reminds everyone that "every upcoming milestone will be important."
After rounding Cape Horn on Sunday, January 11, the crew is currently working to circumvent the Saint Helena High, "the first obstacle that will be the deciding factor," according to Thomas.
"The high isn't forming in the usual way; there's a windless zone in its western part that the boat is currently skirting," explains Philippe Legros, head of the routing team. "It should then find a light trade wind tomorrow before encountering another area of light and uncertain winds tomorrow evening."
Once free of the high, the crew can focus on crossing the equator, likely on Monday morning, before embarking on the final stretch and the crossing of the North Atlantic to the finish line.
"It's up to us to keep a cool head and stay focused on the wind, the strategy, and the course," Thomas asserts. Despite the intensity of the challenge, the seven sailors won't give up! "We know these are the ten most nerve-wracking days, but the boat is performing at 100%, and so is the crew.
The voyage in figures
Departure from Ouessant: Monday, December 15th at 9:01 PM
To beat the record, the crew must cross the line again before January 25, 2026 at 8:31 PM (French time).
Ouessant-equator
Crossing: Saturday, December 20th at 01:03:30 (French time)
Travel time: 4 days 4 hours 2 minutes 25 seconds*
Deviation from Spindrift (based on 4 days, 19 hours, 57 minutes at the equator) of 15 hours, 54 minutes, and 35 seconds
Difference with Idec Sport (based on 5 days 18h 59min) of 1 day 14h56min35s
Number of miles traveled: 3355 miles (6213 km)
Average speed since the start: 33.3 knots
Ouessant-Bonne Espérance
Crossing the Cape of Good Hope: Friday, December 26, 2025 at 8:56:57 PM (French time)
Travel time: 10 days, 23 hours, 55 minutes, 52 seconds
Difference with the Maxi Edmond de Rothschild (11 days, 9 hours, 53 minutes in 2021): 9 hours, 56 minutes faster
Difference with Idec Sport (12 days, 19 hours, 28 minutes): 1 day, 19 hours, 31 minutes faster
Ouessant-Cape Leeuwin
Passage time at Leeuwin 22h18min 43s (French time) this Thursday, January 1, 2026
Travel time: 17 days, 1 hour, 17 minutes and 38 seconds
Gap to IDEC Sport (17 days, 6 hours, 59 minutes): 5 hours, 41 minutes, 22 seconds ahead of Idec
Number of miles traveled: 13,184 miles since the start
Average speed since the start: 32.1 knots
Tasmania (Southeast Cape)
Passage on January 3rd at 1:35 PM (French time) in 18 days, 16 hours, 34 minutes.
Gap to Idec: 1 hour 56 minutes ahead
Cape Horn
Passage time on January 11th at 01:47 (French time)
Travel time from Ushant to Cape Horn: 26 days, 4 hours, 46 minutes
Pacific crossing duration TASMANIA - HORN: 7 days, 12 hours, 12 minutes
Distance covered from Ouessant for Sodebo Ultim 3: 19781 miles (18332 for Idec in 2017)
Distance travelled further than IDEC: 1449 miles
Gap to Idec Sport (26 days, 15 hours, 45 minutes): 10 hours, 59 minutes ahead at Cape Horn
Pacific record (Tasmania-Cape Horn)
7 days, 12 hours, 12 minutes*
Difference with François Gabart (7 days 15 hours 20 minutes): 3 hours 7 minutes
*subject to WSSRC validation
Sodebo Ultim 3 crew for the Jules Verne Trophy attempt:
Thomas Coville (57 years old) - Frédéric Denis (41 years old) - Pierre Leboucher (45 years old) - Léonard Legrand (31 years old) - Guillaume Pirouelle (31 years old) - Benjamin Schwartz (38 years old) - Nicolas Troussel (51 years old)
The reference times for the record to beat:
Jules Verne Trophy record (IDEC SPORT): 40 days, 23 hours, 30 minutes:
Ecuador: 5 days 18 hours 59 minutes
Good Hope: 12 days 19 hours 28 minutes
Cape Leeuwin: 17 days, 6 hours, 59 minutes
Cape Horn: 26 days, 6 hours, 45 minutes
Follow the Jules Verne Trophy on an interactive map
This year again, Sodebo pushes the boundaries of race tracking with enhanced, immersive mapping designed to let you experience the round-the-world record attempt from the inside. After launching this unique experience during the last attempt, and then expanding it on the Transat Café L'Or, we're back with an even more comprehensive and transparent 2025 version.
Go to sodebo-ultim3.sodebo.com
As soon as you access the chartplotter, you can see at a glance who's on watch, who's maneuvering, who's resting, and follow the race time in real time. An intuitive interface for instantly understanding life aboard Sodebo Ultim 3.
To experience the pace at over 40 knots, a live onboard camera feed is regularly available. This offers rare, raw, and authentic access to what's happening on deck, both in key moments and in the daily routine of the record attempt.
A major new feature launched on the last attempt last year and now enhanced:
You can follow, live, the exchanges between the ship and the land.
Routing, technology, communication... we take you behind the scenes of exchanges between land and sea. You truly see how decisions are made, how the team adapts, anticipates, and reacts.
FAN ZONE - A dedicated space that allows the public to ask questions directly to the onshore team.
The answers are published live: a simple, interactive and ultra-educational way to get into the race, understand the choices, the challenges, and the situations encountered by the crew around the world.