Ireland’s Tom Dolan (Smurfit Kappa-Kingspan) wins 55th La Solitaire du Figaro Paprec overall
Finishing in seventh place on the 710 nautical miles Stage 3 into La Turballe on France’s Loire Atlantique coast at 05:18:10hrs this Thursday morning, Ireland’s Tom Dolan (Smurfit Kappa-Kingpsan) is the provisional overall winner of the 55th edition of La Solitaire du Figaro Paprec, the annual multi-stage solo offshore race which is considered the toughest event of solo offshore sailing.
On his seventh challenge on the race the 37-year-old Irish skipper finished ninth on the first leg from Le Havre across the Bay of Biscay to Gijón in NW Spain, just 5 mins 31 secs behind the stage winner. He then won the second stage from Gijon to Royan, establishing a lead on aggregate time of 57 minutes which gave him a solid cushion going into this brutally tough, decisive stage which saw winds of over 30 knots and huge seas.
His seventh place early this morning gives Tom Dolan, who grew up on a farm in County Meath, an overall winning margin of 25mins 38 secs over French rival Lois Berrehar (Skipper MACIF 2022) who won Stage 1 and Stage 3.
Dolan becomes the first non-French skipper to win La Solitaire du Figaro since 1988 when Swiss skipper Laurent Bourgnon triumphed when the race was still sailed in half tonner class yachts.
Delighted and exhausted Dolan told fans and media on the dock, “It’s a moment I’ve dreamed of for years and so to win now is incredible. It is so surreal right now; I can’t believe it’s true. That was an incredible leg, six or seven hours full on in 25-30 knots of wind. Gybing in the 30 knots. But this is about years of hard work and sacrifice. Before this it was things in my head which held me back but now I have a super team with me, a great team.” Dolan said in La Turballe.
He enthused, “Others in sailing talk of the Sydney Hobart or the Fastnet races, for me it has always been La Solitaire. When I won into Royan it was special with all the boats coming out to meet me, that really allowed me to dream. But on the water on this leg when Lois (Berrehar) got in front and I knew I had an hour and 40 minutes on him I was starting to think it might happen. But it was really only at the line that I realised finally.”
A carefully planned strategic move in light winds off the NW corner of Spain was the key to Dolan’s big win on Stage 2 which has proven the foundation for his overall triumph. He established a small lead which he grew to 57 minutes over second placed Gaston Morvan (Région Bretagne-CMB Performance) who secured third overall.
Charlotte Yven (Skipper MACIF 2023) is top female overall in fifth place, missing the podium by just 27 minutes.
Mental strength tells
It was at the prizegiving last year whilst listening to winner Corentin Horeau talk of the difference his ‘mental coach’ had made to his self-belief and mental game that Dolan decided he too needed to bolster his psychological game, especially in remaining lucid and positive when in a state of extreme tiredness and stress, ensuring small mistakes did not escalate into a poor result. He sought out Gerry Hussey, a renowned Irish sports psychologist. The two bonded over their similar backgrounds and Hussey has since been a powerful positive influence as has his sailing coach and boat technician Gildas Mahé who is a very successful Figaro sailor in his own right.
Tom’s work with Hussey clarified the need to return to enjoying the fundamentals of racing and being on the water but behind Dolan’s mantra this season of - ‘sticking to the processes and just enjoying myself’, he firmly believed he could win this La Solitaire du Figaro.
“Tom has grown in stature bit by bit, but this year for sure he wanted to win, he knew he could win and did all he could to make sure he would. No one has worked harder over the years for this than Tom and this year having a great team behind him has made the difference,” said Tom’s long-time friend and mentor, Irish businessman Gerry Jones, who first met Tom at Glenans sailing school in Baltimore when Dolan was sailing instructor in 2008, and who has been his mentor ever since.
From Irish farm to La Solitaire podium
The back story of the new La Solitaire du Figaro winner differs from most of the French winners to date. He grew up on a 48-acre farm in the north of County Meath. On something of a whim his father bought a Miracle dinghy which he and Tom sailed on Lough Ramor.
He went to study agriculture in UCD but dropped out and was unemployed before signing up for an outdoor education course at a college in North Dublin. From there he moved to Glenans in Baltimore and when that sailing school closed in Ireland, he moved to Conceaneau, France.
His father subsequently passed away and with his modest inheritance Tom Dolan bought a Mini 650 which he raced, at the time setting up a small offshore sailing school in Concarneau using the Mini, in order to make money. He quickly proved he was a very natural, fast sailor with great stamina as well as a sharp mind. In the Mini class he gained a reputation for his speed, becoming nicknamed ‘The Flying Irishman’ finishing sixth on the 2017 Mini Transat before joining the Figaro circuit in 2018.
He finished fifth overall on the La Solitaire in 2020 and in 2022 was seventh.