Thierry Dubois, from the offshore race to the expedition, portrait of a whole and endearing sailor

© Anne Sperber

With his clear eyes and his frank smile, you want to sit in the comfortable saloon of his sailboat, the Louise, and listen for hours to Thierry Dubois recounting his incredible adventures at sea, with a cup of steaming coffee in his hands.

The course of the skipper "s1"s2"Boidu

It is a name that resonates in the collective memory of ocean racing enthusiasts. In love with the world of the sea since his childhood, and after a career as a shipbuilding worker in La Trinité sur Mer, he became a preparer and then a crew member on Paul Vatine's trimaran Haute-Normandie. The 90s witnessed his first races and his first solo victories.

From his youngest age Thierry sailed in cruise sometimes in solo, and had taken taste there. He testifies: "s2"

Thierry won the Mini Transat in 1993 on board Amnesty International He was the only participant to reach Funchal in Portugal without a stopover despite the cancellation of the leg by the race management. He did not give up on the second leg and this success gave rise to his ambition to sail an Open 60 (Joubert-Nivelt design) in order to participate in the Vendée Globe.

In the preparatory phase, he participated in two important races. He was forced to retire during the 1994 Route du Rhum, and a year later he won the UAP Open (Crewed Tour of Europe in Open 60s) on For Amnesty International . This unwavering loyalty to the defenders of Human Rights gives meaning to his commitment to ocean racing and is an obvious choice for this wholehearted sailor.

Thierry Dubois
Thierry Dubois

ocean racing, I really had the choice to stay in this environment on the technical side, because that's my initial training."> It is at the time of his first engagement in the 3rd edition of the Vendée Globe in 1996-1997 that Thierry has appointment with his destiny. In the course of of a Dantesque storm in the Indian Ocean, while out of the race, he risked his life by capsizing on this same IMOCA. After 3 days on a life raft in 60 to 70 knots of wind, he was rescued by the Australian frigate Adelaide, within a few hours of another skipper, Tony Bullimore, who suffered the same misfortune.

Challenge met

Steps in the construction of the Louise
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