February 10, 2025
4 minutes reading time
Violette Dorange sails into the history books as the youngest sailor ever to complete the Vendée Globe
Tens of thousands of well-wishers - from tiny toddlers to the older generations – adorned the harbour at Les Sables d’Olonne on Sunday to salute the rising star of this Vendée Globe, Violette Dorange, as she completed her first Vendée Globe after 90 days, 22 hours, 37 minutes at sea.
The inspirational 23-year-old finished in 25th place, but in so doing the talented young French sailor from La Rochelle also broke a record and achieved several personal milestones. Not only is she now the youngest ever finisher on the solo round the world race, but this race confirms her as a major ocean racing talent for the future – a journey that began as a 15-year-old sailing the English Channel and the Straits of Gibraltar in a tiny Optimist dinghy and has seen her become a multi-time medallist at the 420 Youth World Championships.
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Despite being warned by her team to expect a big welcome she was blown away by the number of people who turned out to celebrate her finish and to congratulate her.
The French national media had already crowned her “the new star” (Ouest-France), the “superstar” (Le Parisien), “the child prodigy of sailing” (France 3). The youngest ever finisher “brought a breath of fresh air into communication” (France Info) and met with “incredible success on social networks” (Ouest-France) where “she is a huge hit” (Voiles et Voiliers).
The magnitude of the welcome, the passion and fervour of the huge crowd took the diminutive, very natural solo racer by surprise.
It was a massive, intergenerational, joyful crowd which lines the channel despite the light rain. On the water dozens of boats of all sizes and shapes turn out to welcome her. She makes her final tack and crosses the line to a huge cacophony of sirens and hooters.
As chants of “Violette, Violette, Violette” rung out from the shore, she jumped on her deck wearing the same cheeky, mischievous smile which has illuminated so many of her short videos which have told the story of her race.
“I am still in shock, stunned by the size of the crowd when I arrived! It was incredible! I feel a lot of different emotions, I feel like I am having a bit of an out of body experience. I am so happy to have completed this round the world race,” she said.
“I have achieved my dream, this adventure, and it is exceptional! The race lived up to my expectations. Over these three months, I have experienced things that I would never have imagined. I have gone through storms with six-meter waves and violent winds. I have had some hard times including having to climb the mast twice, but also magical moments, like the discovery of Staten Island, marking the beginning of the Atlantic climb. This adventure was intense and unforgettable.”
Even for the Vendée Globe the atmosphere is almost unbelievable to the public as well as for the young sailor. She turns around, forms a heart with her hands and holds her head for a long time as if she too can’t believe the madness that is following her.
A few hundred metres before docking, Violette breaks down, bursts into tears and holds her face.
“Three months without seeing one single human face, and today this huge crowd, it’s incredible! I was warned that the arrival would feel like a human tidal wave, but I never expected it to be to this extent! I would like to thank my friends dressed as dinosaurs, that touched me a lot. I shed a tear in the channel. The length of the race was difficult to manage: three months without seeing any of my loved ones is a long time. I really need to see them again, to hug them.”
Her story captured the imagination of the viewing public worldwide. Not long after the start, her massive surge in popularity was evident as her social media numbers skyrocketed. When the village opened late October 2024, she started out with 50,000 on Instagram which had already doubled to 100,000 on start day, but now topping out at 557,000 as she finished the race, alongside the 204,000 fans on TikTok and 420,000 followers on Facebook. The celebrated French singer Angèle and the swimmer Léon Marchand are among her followers. Never has a French skipper attracted such a fanbase on social networks.
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“For three months, I was in my own bubble, without access to social media. I became aware of the enthusiasm thanks to the messages from my family and my team. It was incredible. I did not expect so much support. It touched me a lot at sea, and I would simply like to say thank you.”
Original text and images courtesy of the Vendée Globe