Tour de France à la voile is an annual yachting race around the coast of France. Inaugurated in 1978, it links the English Channel to the French Riviera and is held in July.
Famous skippers have taken part in the race, including Loïck Peyron and the four time America's Cup winner Russell Coutts. The race is, however, not reserved for professionals, and it also attracts amateurs and students thanks to three distinct rankings.
The race visits around ten harbours along the French coast. It includes one or two day coastal stages - that vary from year to year - as well as intensive regattas at the various ports. The boats are transported by road (trucks) midway through the race from stages held in the Atlantic Ocean to those in the Mediterranean Sea.
Classes used
editEach team sails the same type of boat, so that it is a one design competition. Different boats have been used since the creation of the race, as has the balance of the offshore and inshore racing elements. Classes used have been:
| Years | Boat type |
|---|---|
| 1978 | Écume de mer |
| 1979–1981 | First 30 |
| 1982–1983 | Rush 31 |
| 1984–1991 | Selection 37 |
| 1992–1998 | JOD 35 |
| 1999–2010 | Mumm 30/Farr 30 |
| 2011–2014 | M34 |
| 2015– | Diam 24 |
List of previous winners
edit| Year | Boat Type | Boat Name | Skipper |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1978 | Écume de mer | Marseille | François Paillou |
| 1979 | First 30 | Dunkerque | Joé Setten |
| 1980 | Dunkerque | Damien Savatier | |
| 1981 | Dunkerque | Damien Savatier | |
| 1982 | Rush 31 | Marseille | Jean-Paul Mouren |
| 1983 | Lanvéoc-Navale | Benoît Caignaert | |
| 1984 | Selection 37 | Europe | Philippe Hanin et Dominique d’Andrimont |
| 1985 | Côtes du Nord | Yannick Dupetit | |
| 1986 | Le Havre | Benoît Caignaert | |
| 1987 | Sète-Languedoc-Roussillon | Pierre Mas et Bertrand Pacé | |
| 1988 | Sète-Languedoc-Roussillon | Pierre Mas et Bertrand Pacé | |
| 1989 | Ronic Saône-et-Loire | Richard Sautieux | |
| 1990 | Wasquehal | Hans Bousholte et Philippe Delhumeau | |
| 1991 | La Ciotat | Laurent Delage | |
| 1992 | JOD 35 | Sodifac-Roubaix | Jimmy Pahun et Jean-Pierre Dick |
| 1993 | Saint-Quentin-en Yvelines | Thierry Péponnet | |
| 1994 | Saint-Pierre et Miquelon | Alain Fédensieu | |
| 1995 | Baume & Mercier – Force EDC-Paris | Bernard Mallaret et Vincent Portugal | |
| 1996 | Edouard Leclerc – Région SCASO | Vincent Fertin | |
| 1997 | CSC - Sun Microsystems | Bertrand Pacé et Philippe Guigné | |
| 1998 | Nantes & Saint-Nazaire - Bouygues Telecom | Luc Pillot | |
| 1999 | Farr 30 | Kateie | Luc Dewulf |
| 2000 | Barlo Plastics | Adrian Stead | |
| 2001 | Virbac - St Raphaël - Générali | Jean-Pierre Dick | |
| 2002 | Nantes St Nazaire | Pierre-Loïc Bethet | |
| 2003 | CapSport | Xavier Lecœur et Bernard Mallaret | |
| 2004 | Bouygues Telecom | Pierre Loïc Berthet | |
| 2005 | Toulon Provence Méditerranée COYCHyères | Fabien Henry | |
| 2006 | Région Île de France | Jean-Pierre Nicol | |
| 2007 | Toulon Provence Méditerranée COYCHyères | Fabien Henry | |
| 2008 | Courrier Dunkerque | Daniel Souben | |
| 2009 | Courrier Dunkerque | Daniel Souben | |
| 2010 | Nouvelle-Calédonie | Bertrand Pacé et Vincent Portugal | |
| 2011 | M34 | Sud de France/Languedoc-Roussillon | Bertrand Pacé et Vincent Portugal |
| 2012 | Toulon Provence Méditerranée COYCHyères | Fabien Henry | |
| 2013 | Groupama 34 | Franck Cammas | |
| 2014 | Courrier Dunkerque 3 | Daniel Souben Erwan Le Roux | |
| 2015 | Diam 24 | Spindrift | Thierry Douillard Xavier Revil François Morvan Matthieu Vandame |
| 2016 | Lorina Limonade - Golfe du Morbihan | Matthieu Salomon Bruno Mouriac Kevin Pepoonnet Quentin Ponroy Quentin Delapierre | |
| 2017 | Fondation FDJ - Des pieds et des mains | Benjamin Amiot Damien Iehl Francois Morvan Damien Seguin | |
| 2018 | Lorina Limonade - Golfe du Morbihan | Bruno Mourniac Tim Mourniac Quentin Delapierre Corentin Horeau | |
| 2019 | Team Beijaflore | Laurent Berjon Arnaud Jarlegan Pierre Mas Julien Villion Valentin Bellet Valentin Sipan Guillaume Pirouelle | |
| 2020 | Cancelled due to COVID-19 | ||
| 2021 | Cancelled due to COVID-19 | ||