CIt's the phenomenon of the moment, and especially the attraction of social networks! Which Internet user, young or old, has never watched at least one of his viral videos today? At only 23 years old, Vendée Globe skipper Violette Dorange (team Devenir) shines not only at sea but also on all digital platforms. Everyone who is passionate about sailing or not has already seen his face somewhere, whether on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, in newspaper articles, on television, but also in the street on the facades of McDonald's restaurants, his main sponsor . Her exhilarating face, her very contagious good humor, her almost insolent carelessness and her undeniable talent make the skipper born in Rochefort (17) one of the stars of this 2024 Vendée Globe.
The “most followed” skipper in France
Since the start of the event, the youngest in the competition, currently in the middle of the pack, is certainly, of all the skippers, the one who films her adventure the most. Stories, videos, photos are published daily in chaos. The smile is still there, and the success with the public, visibly under the spell, is incandescent. You just have to go to his Facebook page to see it. Every day, Charentaise-Maritime receives tons of messages of congratulations and encouragement from thousands of people. On November 25, the publication announcing its exit from the Doldrums area had a resounding response on Facebook with more than 73,000 reactions, 7,600 comments and more than 1,200 shares. His video filmed when he crossed the Equator on November 25 attracted nearly 61,000 people and was shared by 3,000 Internet users.
Violette Dorange on the day of the start of the Vendée Globe in Sables-d'Olonne on November 10.
Laurent Theillet / SO
This is quite simply the best, by far, in terms of audience results among the 40 skippers in the competition. Its large community on social networks has a lot to do with it: Violette Dorange has to date more than 800,000 subscribers on all platforms, including 305,000 on Facebook, 376,000 on Instagram and 160,000 on TikTok. “She is the most followed skipper in France, even in the world,” enthuses Manon Maléjacq, communications and media relations manager at the Devenir team. At the global level, American skipper Cole Brauer surpasses Violette Dorange only on Instagram, with 476,000 subscribers.
“She has very good speech, she knows how to tell a story and it catches the eye”
“Born with social networks”
How to explain this dazzling notoriety? “Several things played a role,” replies David Lupion, digital communicator for the Devenir team. First of all, Violette Dorange has a name and a face that are easy to remember. Then, she benefits from an extraordinary positioning because she is the youngest skipper in the history of the Vendée Globe, but also the protégé of the legend Jean Le Cam [elle navigue à bord de l’ancien bateau du skipper breton, NDLR]. Finally, she also carried out many interviews in the media and benefited from great notoriety in the Vendée Globe village. »
The personality and friendly image that Violette exudes in her videos above all allow her to easily take everyone with her on her adventure. “She has very good speech, she knows how to tell a story and that catches the eye,” continues David Lupion. “Violette was born with social networks and has always loved it. She grew up with YouTube and even created her own page. She knows how to film, edit videos… It's a plus for us, because she sends us very high-quality content and she does it quickly, in two or three takes,” he analyzes, not without pride.
Ambassador of a Disney film
We can actually observe him doing all kinds of things in his videos: brushing his hair in the sun, eating his freeze-dried tabbouleh or even toasting beer with Neptune. With each content posted, the number of views is guaranteed. According to his team, this audience and this virality do not go to his head however. “Violet is very down to earth,” confirms David.
The Rochefort skipper has in any case not finished arousing fascination. The global cinema giant Disney understood this well by offering her to become the ambassador of the film “Vaïana 2”, in theaters since Wednesday. A few days earlier, a mini-film recounting the journey of the young sailor was even broadcast ahead of the preview of the cartoon at the Grand Rex in Paris. It’s certain, we haven’t heard the last of Violette Dorange.
