He sailed an excellent, very steady last Vendée Globe to finish seventh and has the full, ongoing support of his loyal sponsors Bureau Vallée. He pledged to return and do better almost as soon as the 2016-17 race finished, getting his hands on Armel Le Cléac’h’s well proven, well set up winning IMOCA. He grew up in Paris and has a father who is Welsh, meet Louis Burton.  

The official press conference for the ninth edition of the Vendée Globe was held today Thursday, September 17 at the Palais Brongniart in Paris. The event mustered as many sailors, partners, organisers and journalists as was safely possible. It is an important milestone 52 days before the start of the non-stop, unassisted solo round-the-world race which is shaping up to be an exceptional event in every area

Some joined by videoconference other skippers there were there in person in Paris, but here is a round up of what the skippers said at the Press Conference. 

Single-handed ocean racing is certainly one of the sports most suited to an extreme of social distancing, but welcoming the public to Les Sables d'Olonne is a big challenge in these difficult times.

He has a degree in Philosophy and was a career journalist with the Figaro newspaper who then took up the challenge to race on the AG2R and La Solitaire du Figaro. That set in train his desire to race solo offshore, culminating in his first Vendée Globe in 2016-17 when he finished 11^th. Now, looking to a step up in his performance and racing and sailing full time, meet Fabrice Amedeo