Born in Paris, Isabelle Autissier has always been drawn to the immensity of the ocean. She made her first solo Atlantic crossing aboard a ship of her design.
She took the start of several races including the Mini-Transat in 1987 where she won the first stage before finishing third overall.
She is the first woman to have completed a race around the world in 1991. In 1993, aboard “Squirrel Poitou-Charente II”, Isabelle Autissier finishes second in the race of Europe by winning two stages out of the six constituting this event run in crew.
In 1994, after a first unsuccessful attempt, she and her crew beat the New York – San Francisco record by more than 14 days. She thus returns to the legend of sailing. A great sailor, Isabelle Autissier came second in the Route d’Or (crew race) in 1998, behind Yves Parlier. After capsizing in the race around the world alone, she focuses on crew races and becomes radio host for France Inter. Third and second in the Tour de France in sailing in 2001 and 2002, she launched the project “Why not Antarctica”.
She was elected in December 2009 president of the French branch of the World Wildlife Fund (WWF).
Spoken Languages: French, English
