A supplier of legends since 1989, this race has impressed the maritime world and the public in general, to the point where even the strongest superlatives seem unable to define it.

On 9 November 2008, 20 navigators will set sails aboard their monohulls, heading towards the three great capes, marking the southern tips of the African continent, Australia and America. The Vendée Globe will start, for the sixth time, from the harbour of Les Sables d’Olonne, where it was born.