Francis Joyon
Encyclopedia
Francis Joyon is a professional sail boat racer and yachtsman, and currently holds the record for the fastest single-handed sailing circumnavigation
.
Although previously well known as an offshore sailor, Joyon's real leap to international prominence came in February 2004 when the Breton
became the fastest world solo yachtsman, setting a time over 20 days faster than the previous record for a circumnavigation
of 72 days 22 hours and 54 minutes and 22 seconds. During the record run he sailed more than 28000 nautical miles (51,856 km) at an average speed of 15.5 knots (30.4 km/h) on the 90 feet (27.4 m) trimaran
IDEC. IDEC, formerly known as Sport Electric, had previously taken 71 days to win the Jules Verne Trophy. Joyon took only an extra day on his own with a boat not designed for single-handed sailing, original (over 10 year old) sails and no weather router.
In February 2005 Ellen MacArthur
beat Joyon's record by 1 day, 8 hours, 35 minutes, 49 seconds.
On 6 July 2005 Francis Joyon and IDEC crossed the finishing line between Lizard Point
and Ushant
6 days 4 hours 1 minute and 37 seconds after the start at Ambrose Light
off New York
, breaking the 11-year old record of Laurent Bourgnon for the single-handed
crossing of the Atlantic Ocean
with a sailing boat. During the same voyage he also broke the 24 hour distance record for single-handed sailing by sailing 543 nautical miles (1,006 km) in one day on the 3 July 2005. Joyon's record voyage ended badly on 7 July while he was sailing back to his home port after completion of the transatlantic run. Joyon, who refused help to sail the boat home from the finish line and was still single-handed, was sailing across the English Channel. At a critical moment an exhausted Joyon fell asleep and the boat continued on autopilot
. IDEC ran aground at the Pointe de Penmarc'h on the Breton coast. The €4 million trimaran was wrecked and Joyon luckily escaped without injury.
On 9 May 2006 Joyon announced that he was building a new muilti-hull to be called IDEC II
. His new boat is designed for solo sailing unlike the original IDEC, which was originally designed for crewed sailing. Design was by Nigel Irens & Bernard Cabaret. IDEC II weighs 11 tons, compared to his previous boat which weighed 16 tons, and has 10% more sail area. The new boat was seen as capable of taking 3 days off the existing record under the same weather conditions.
On 23 November 2007 Joyon set off in IDEC II
in an attempt to beat Ellen MacArthur's
world record for a single handed circumnavigation
. He achieved this on 20 January 2008 in 57 days, 13 hours 34 minutes and 6 seconds, in a voyage that is regarded as one of the most impressive sailing feats in recent history and in a time nearly two weeks less than the previous record.
Around the world sailing record
The first around the world sailing record was, logically, set by the first person who circumnavigated the world: Juan Sebastián Elcano and the remaining members of Ferdinand Magellan's crew who completed their journey in 1522. The first solo record was set by Joshua Slocum in the Spray .Most races...
.
Although previously well known as an offshore sailor, Joyon's real leap to international prominence came in February 2004 when the Breton
Brittany
Brittany is a cultural and administrative region in the north-west of France. Previously a kingdom and then a duchy, Brittany was united to the Kingdom of France in 1532 as a province. Brittany has also been referred to as Less, Lesser or Little Britain...
became the fastest world solo yachtsman, setting a time over 20 days faster than the previous record for a circumnavigation
Circumnavigation
Circumnavigation – literally, "navigation of a circumference" – refers to travelling all the way around an island, a continent, or the entire planet Earth.- Global circumnavigation :...
of 72 days 22 hours and 54 minutes and 22 seconds. During the record run he sailed more than 28000 nautical miles (51,856 km) at an average speed of 15.5 knots (30.4 km/h) on the 90 feet (27.4 m) trimaran
Trimaran
A trimaran is a multihulled boat consisting of a main hull and two smaller outrigger hulls , attached to the main hull with lateral struts...
IDEC. IDEC, formerly known as Sport Electric, had previously taken 71 days to win the Jules Verne Trophy. Joyon took only an extra day on his own with a boat not designed for single-handed sailing, original (over 10 year old) sails and no weather router.
In February 2005 Ellen MacArthur
Ellen MacArthur
Dame Ellen Patricia MacArthur, DBE is an English sailor, up until 2009, from Whatstandwell near Matlock in Derbyshire, now based in West Cowes, on the Isle of Wight. She is best known as a solo long-distance yachtswoman. On 7 February 2005 she broke the world record for the fastest solo...
beat Joyon's record by 1 day, 8 hours, 35 minutes, 49 seconds.
On 6 July 2005 Francis Joyon and IDEC crossed the finishing line between Lizard Point
Lizard Point, Cornwall
Lizard Point in Cornwall is at the southern tip of the Lizard Peninsula. It is situated half-a-mile south of Lizard village in the civil parish of Landewednack and approximately 11 miles southeast of Helston....
and Ushant
Ushant
Ushant is an island at the south-western end of the English Channel which marks the north-westernmost point of metropolitan France. It belongs to Brittany and is in the traditional region of Bro-Leon. Administratively, Ushant is a commune in the Finistère department...
6 days 4 hours 1 minute and 37 seconds after the start at Ambrose Light
Ambrose Light
Ambrose Light, often called Ambrose Tower, was a light station at the convergence of several major shipping lanes in Lower New York Bay, including Ambrose Channel, the primary passage for ships entering and departing the Port of New York and New Jersey....
off New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, breaking the 11-year old record of Laurent Bourgnon for the single-handed
Single-handed sailing
The sport of single-handed sailing or solo sailing is sailing with only one crewmember . The term is usually used with reference to ocean and long-distance sailing, and particularly competitive sailing....
crossing of the Atlantic Ocean
Transatlantic sailing record
Since the five-weeks voyage of Christopher Columbus in 1492, crossing the Atlantic, fast and safely, between Europe and America has always been an important issue. Today, the route has become a classic one among skippers...
with a sailing boat. During the same voyage he also broke the 24 hour distance record for single-handed sailing by sailing 543 nautical miles (1,006 km) in one day on the 3 July 2005. Joyon's record voyage ended badly on 7 July while he was sailing back to his home port after completion of the transatlantic run. Joyon, who refused help to sail the boat home from the finish line and was still single-handed, was sailing across the English Channel. At a critical moment an exhausted Joyon fell asleep and the boat continued on autopilot
Autopilot
An autopilot is a mechanical, electrical, or hydraulic system used to guide a vehicle without assistance from a human being. An autopilot can refer specifically to aircraft, self-steering gear for boats, or auto guidance of space craft and missiles...
. IDEC ran aground at the Pointe de Penmarc'h on the Breton coast. The €4 million trimaran was wrecked and Joyon luckily escaped without injury.
On 9 May 2006 Joyon announced that he was building a new muilti-hull to be called IDEC II
Trimaran IDEC
Trimaran IDEC or Idec 2 is a maxi-trimaran skippered by Francis Joyon and sponsored par groupe IDEC.The main goal of Francis Joyon was to regain the single-handed round-the-world record from Ellen MacArthur...
. His new boat is designed for solo sailing unlike the original IDEC, which was originally designed for crewed sailing. Design was by Nigel Irens & Bernard Cabaret. IDEC II weighs 11 tons, compared to his previous boat which weighed 16 tons, and has 10% more sail area. The new boat was seen as capable of taking 3 days off the existing record under the same weather conditions.
On 23 November 2007 Joyon set off in IDEC II
Trimaran IDEC
Trimaran IDEC or Idec 2 is a maxi-trimaran skippered by Francis Joyon and sponsored par groupe IDEC.The main goal of Francis Joyon was to regain the single-handed round-the-world record from Ellen MacArthur...
in an attempt to beat Ellen MacArthur's
Ellen MacArthur
Dame Ellen Patricia MacArthur, DBE is an English sailor, up until 2009, from Whatstandwell near Matlock in Derbyshire, now based in West Cowes, on the Isle of Wight. She is best known as a solo long-distance yachtswoman. On 7 February 2005 she broke the world record for the fastest solo...
world record for a single handed circumnavigation
Around the world sailing record
The first around the world sailing record was, logically, set by the first person who circumnavigated the world: Juan Sebastián Elcano and the remaining members of Ferdinand Magellan's crew who completed their journey in 1522. The first solo record was set by Joshua Slocum in the Spray .Most races...
. He achieved this on 20 January 2008 in 57 days, 13 hours 34 minutes and 6 seconds, in a voyage that is regarded as one of the most impressive sailing feats in recent history and in a time nearly two weeks less than the previous record.
Achievements
- 1988: 32nd Route de la Decouverte (JB-Express)
- 1990: 10th Route du RhumRoute du RhumThe Route du Rhum is a transatlantic single-handed yacht race, which takes places every 4 years in November. The course is between Saint Malo, Brittany, France and Pointe-à-Pitre, Guadeloupe, France...
(BPO) - 1991: 5th Course de l'Europe (Kar-Cadelac)
- 1992: 3rd TransatSingle-Handed Trans-Atlantic RaceThe Single-handed Trans-Atlantic Race, or STAR, is an east-to-west yacht race across the North Atlantic. When inaugurated in 1960, it was the first single-handed ocean yacht race; it is run from Plymouth to the USA, and is held every four years....
and 3rd Route du cafe (BPO) - 1993: 3rd Course de l'Europe (Banque Populaire)
- 1995: 2nd Transat Jacques-Vabre and 3rd Course de l'Europe (Banque Populaire)
- 1996: 2nd Transat Quebec - Saint Malo (Banque Populaire)
- 1998: 6th Route du RhumRoute du RhumThe Route du Rhum is a transatlantic single-handed yacht race, which takes places every 4 years in November. The course is between Saint Malo, Brittany, France and Pointe-à-Pitre, Guadeloupe, France...
(Banque Populaire) - 2000: 1st TransatSingle-Handed Trans-Atlantic RaceThe Single-handed Trans-Atlantic Race, or STAR, is an east-to-west yacht race across the North Atlantic. When inaugurated in 1960, it was the first single-handed ocean yacht race; it is run from Plymouth to the USA, and is held every four years....
(Eure-et-Loir) - 2001: 1st Fastnet RaceFastnet raceThe Fastnet Race is a famous offshore yachting race. It is considered one of the classic offshore races. It takes place every two years over a course of . The race starts off Cowes on the Isle of Wight in England, rounds the Fastnet Rock off the southwest coast of Ireland and then finishes at...
and also beat the record by sailing around the Isle of WightIsle of WightThe Isle of Wight is a county and the largest island of England, located in the English Channel, on average about 2–4 miles off the south coast of the county of Hampshire, separated from the mainland by a strait called the Solent...
in 3 hours ten minutes and 11 seconds - 2003-2004: Beat the record by sailing singlehanded around the world in 72 days, 22 hours, 54 minutes and 22 seconds (IDEC). Subsequently beaten by Ellen MacArthurEllen MacArthurDame Ellen Patricia MacArthur, DBE is an English sailor, up until 2009, from Whatstandwell near Matlock in Derbyshire, now based in West Cowes, on the Isle of Wight. She is best known as a solo long-distance yachtswoman. On 7 February 2005 she broke the world record for the fastest solo...
in 2005 - 2005: Beat the record by sailing single-handed across the AtlanticTransatlantic sailing recordSince the five-weeks voyage of Christopher Columbus in 1492, crossing the Atlantic, fast and safely, between Europe and America has always been an important issue. Today, the route has become a classic one among skippers...
in 6 days, 4 hours 1 minute and 37 seconds (IDEC) - 2007: Beat the 24 hour single-handed distance record by sailing 613.54 miles in 24 hours at an average speed of 25.85 knots. Joyon set the record sailing IDEC 2Trimaran IDECTrimaran IDEC or Idec 2 is a maxi-trimaran skippered by Francis Joyon and sponsored par groupe IDEC.The main goal of Francis Joyon was to regain the single-handed round-the-world record from Ellen MacArthur...
during a successful attempt to break the single-handed around the world record. Soon after, Joyon's 24 hour distance record was beaten by Thomas Coville who sailed 619.3 miles in 24 hours during an unsuccessful single-handed around the world record attempt - 2008: Beat the record for sailing single-handed around the worldAround the world sailing recordThe first around the world sailing record was, logically, set by the first person who circumnavigated the world: Juan Sebastián Elcano and the remaining members of Ferdinand Magellan's crew who completed their journey in 1522. The first solo record was set by Joshua Slocum in the Spray .Most races...
in 57 days 13 hours 34 minutes and 6 seconds comprehensively beating Ellen MacArthur'sEllen MacArthurDame Ellen Patricia MacArthur, DBE is an English sailor, up until 2009, from Whatstandwell near Matlock in Derbyshire, now based in West Cowes, on the Isle of Wight. She is best known as a solo long-distance yachtswoman. On 7 February 2005 she broke the world record for the fastest solo...
existing record by 14 days, 00 hours, 44 minutes and 27 seconds - 2010: 2nd Route du RhumRoute du RhumThe Route du Rhum is a transatlantic single-handed yacht race, which takes places every 4 years in November. The course is between Saint Malo, Brittany, France and Pointe-à-Pitre, Guadeloupe, France...
IDEC II