family, career… what do we know about the youngest sailor in the Vendée Globe?

The youngest skipper ever entered in the Vendée Globe, Violette Dorange is not in her first race. Portrait of a sailor in her blood and a big fan of social networks.

Who is Violette Dorange, the youngest in this Vendée Globe? As the race draws to a close, the youngest skipper ever to take part in the race is expected to reflect on her incredible experience on the grid. 8:30 p.m. Sundaythis January 12. The opportunity to learn more about the woman who put aside her engineering studies in Rennes to fully prepare for this childhood dream. Born into a family passionate about sport, she discovered sailing at the age of 7, on the coast of Rochefort (Charente-Maritime). According to RMC Sport his father is a friend of the sailor Jean-Pierre Dick, holder of a sailing distance record during the 7th Vendée Globe. Rather resistant at first, the youngest of three children developed a passion for sailing alongside the sailor. In 2016, she won her first bronze medal at the youth world championship, before completing the Mini-Transat in 2019. She is, again, the youngest to achieve the feat.

Before this Vendée Globe, Violette Dorange had spent no more than 20 days at sea. Setting out to attack the Atlantic for three months is therefore “son Everest“, jokes the 23-year-old young woman on Instagram. A nod to the feat of Youtuber Inoxtag, who created the event last September with his ascent of the highest peak in the world. The twenty-something perfectly masters the language of Generation X, to whom she regularly addresses on her social networks.She is very transparent and natural, people identify with her.” analyzes his brother Charles for Le Parisien, “Since her first crossing of the Channel in an Optimist (at the age of 15), she has had this desire to share her adventures, reaching out to a fairly young community.“A successful bet, since she has more than 480,000 followers on Instagram alone. Which delights her eldest, who is enthusiastic: “She shows that it is possible to make your dreams come true.“

Vendée Globe: Violette Dorange holds on but is left behind

On the open sea since November 10, the race is coming to an end for the Vendée Globe skippers. The favorite Charlie Dalin should anchor in Les Sables-d’Olonne on Tuesday January 14. Further behind him, Violette Dorange continues to fight to move up the rankings. Saturday January 11, she was in 29th position out of 35 competitors. But she doesn’t let that discourage her. On November 10, when the race started, she gave herself clear objectives: “Finishing will be a first objective. And be happy at sea, enjoy this adventure to the fullest, live it to the fullest, try to share it as best as possible with the team“, she explained to The Voice of the North .

Article written in collaboration with 6Medias.