By Thomas Campion — La Solitaire du Figaro
With anticipation running high, the 36 Figaro sailors finally got their chance to cast off for the opening leg of the 57th edition of La Solitaire du Figaro Paprec. After a spectacular coastal run of roughly 15 nautical miles between the Îles aux Sept and Ploumanac’h, completed in cracking wind and light conditions, Loïs Berrehar on Banque Populaire crossed the line first and is now pointing towards Wolf Rock, the opening waypoint of leg one.
The first leg of La Solitaire du Figaro Paprec got away on a calm sea with a steady 10-knot breeze on Sunday, 17 May. After a clean start, the initial coastal leg was dispatched at pace by Figaro crews clearly eager to make their mark early. After roughly 40 minutes of racing, Berrehar had wrapped up the coastal course, watched by hundreds of spectators both on the water and ashore. The opening two legs proved nippy, with plenty of tacks keeping crews sharp.
Northwest bound
Throughout the day, all 36 Figaro Beneteau 3s will be slogging upwind towards Cornwall. The manageable conditions should allow the solo sailors to settle in relatively comfortably before things get serious overnight Monday into Tuesday, when a beefy low-pressure system moves in. The real skill will be pacing the effort – burn yourself out in the first hours and you’ll be running on fumes and no sleep by the time things get hairy. But these solitaire racers train year-round for exactly this moment and know what they’re getting into.
First three at Paprec 1 buoy
1 – Loïs Berrehar (Banque Populaire)
2 – Arno Biston (Article.1)
3 – Édouard Gobery (SOS Villages d’Enfants)
Berrehar’s first place also bags him the Paprec Trophy.
Skipper soundbites
Tom Goron (XPlorassur): “On this first leg you can’t go hell-for-leather or you’ll be wrecked by the finish. At the same time it could prove decisive really quickly. It’s all about finding that sweet spot. We’re going at it with a smile, but there’s a bit of nerves because it’s shaping up to be properly long and tough.”
Eliaz Morineau (Demain sans HPV): “I’m feeling pretty good and the start should be fairly cruisy. Light wind is perfect for getting your head on straight and making a clean getaway without taking unnecessary risks. The wind will build gradually, so we’ll all find our rhythm, our habits, our little routines to dial in with the conditions and prepare for the second night which is going to be meaty. I still can’t quite believe I’m doing La Solitaire for a second time.”
Chloé Le Bars (Skipper Macif 2026): “This is going to be brilliant! Plenty of upwind work, good breeze, some light patches towards the end – bit of everything really. A solid mix for a proper Solitaire leg. You’ll need to stay sharp.”
Originally published in French by La Solitaire du Figaro.
