Nicolas Lunven, sailing almost as soon as he could walk

Born into a family of sailors, Nicolas learnt how to sail almost as soon as he could walk. "Aboard the family boat, the weekends and holidays were spent around the Gulf of Morbihan and Quiberon Bay. One day, curiosity prompted me to look a little further!"At the same time as his Master’s degree in management and administration, he excelled in a series of races both in France and internationally. Nicolas’ passion for sailing eventually led him to take the start of the Solitaire du Figaro in 2007, an edition which saw him take the Rookie champion crown.

 

COLD-BLOODED ANIMAL

Tenacious and committed, the talented young man takes part in a multitude of training sessions at the Pôle Finistère course au large, an offshore racing training cluster in Port-La-Forêt, north-west Brittany. In 2009, an exceptional line-up of racers just back from the Vendée Globe sign up for the Solitaire du Figaro. Among them Desjoyeaux, Beyou, Eliès and Le Cléac’h are back to defend their title, but Nicolas leads the race from beginning to end. Intuitive, rigorous and determined, the young sailor wins this edition hands down at just 26 years of age and on only his third participation.

Le Figaro headlined the following day with “A victory for modesty”, but on the pontoons, everyone’s grasped the fact that the quiet, polite young man on shore transforms into a formidable winning machine the minute he casts off.

 

THE MODERN SKIPPER

Since this victory, Nicolas has been flying the colours of the insurance company Generali, in true family tradition since, some 35 years earlier, his father had done the exact same thing. His quest for excellence and his professionalism means that he is seldom absent from the podiums, providing his sponsor with all the benefits of a successful partnership both at sea and on land. Indeed, the talented sailor knows how to transform himself into a communicator and develop a win-win relationship with his investors. As such, it is with complete authenticity that he trades in his foulies and his boots for a shirt to share tales of his adventures, his fears and his moments of rapture, or quite simply exposes his environment in all its glory: that where you’re constantly chasing the skyline…

In 2017, Nicolas sailed a faultless season on the Figaro Bénéteau circuit: he won the Solitaire du Figaro for the second time, the Solo Maitre Coq for the third time and the Tour de Bretagne (second victory) to become French Offshore Racing Champion.

 

TARGET VENDÉE GLOBE

The sailor from Vannes in south-west France now has one objective in mind: the Vendée Globe. An accomplished athlete, Nicolas is into everything: from the foiling Moth (a small flying boat) to the large offshore yacht, nothing stops him as long as it floats. “After 8 years on the Figaro circuit, I feel like the mountain dweller who’s scaled Mont Blanc several times, I’m keen to climb Everest! This crazy adventure fills my every thought. I’m keen for a collective project, that is perfectly in keeping with the challenges of the partner company, with an exchange of strong values and a guaranteed return on investment!"