Seven years after his eighth and most recent appearance, which ended in victory at the first-ever Figaro 3 edition, Yoann Richomme is back on the Solitaire du Figaro Paprec (which he also won in 2016), starting on 17 May from Perros-Guirec. An edition he approaches with a mix of doubts and motivation.
What frame of mind are you in ten days before the start of the Solitaire du Figaro Paprec?
It’s a bit complicated because I haven’t really had the preparation I was hoping for, so I know I’m not at my best level. My biggest issue is that I broke three ribs during the BPGO Trophy; recovering from that in just three weeks is obviously far from straightforward. Right now, there are good days and bad days, and the next ten will be crucial in showing how capable I’ll be of making an impact. It’s definitely on my mind — honestly, I could have done without it. They’re “just” ribs, but it’s extremely painful, so I’ll have to sail with a fair amount of painkillers, which isn’t exactly ideal when heading into a Solitaire. The weather will probably dictate a lot of things; in rough conditions, it’ll likely be harder for me.
Have you still managed to prepare properly?
Yes, I’ve had strong support from Paprec and my technical team, I’ve raced all the events, I was really well backed up by Martin Le Pape over three races and I managed to show some good form during the pre-season. That said, I was coming off a very intense 2025 season, between returning from the Vendée, The Ocean Race Europe, and the committed Transat Café L’Or campaign, so it was difficult to get back to 100%. We knew it would be a gamble; I just regret these little setbacks that meant I couldn’t prepare optimally — between the rib injury and a shoulder injury in February that forced me to stop, the momentum hasn’t exactly been positive.
What have you learned from these four months back in Figaro?
That it’s still just as hard! And that everything comes down to the details. That’s nothing new to me, but it’s a useful reminder — and not a bad thing in relation to the Imoca project, where sometimes you don’t necessarily have time to dig into every detail. Here, you’re chasing tiny gains in every direction, and it’s really enjoyable to operate at that level. I’ve also enjoyed getting back to coastal racing, close to the fleet, where you need to make quick decisions and know your boat perfectly to stay consistently fast — otherwise you get swallowed up very quickly. I’ve really enjoyed the game, as well as the class and the training group.
“Nico is fully in the game”
How do you view this class, which has changed a lot in terms of the sailors involved, with many new faces?
The organisation and the key issues within the class haven’t changed much; I think it’s in a healthy place, with a boat that’s now well understood from a measurement-rule perspective, a strong event calendar and still a solid number of sailors — there were 70 sailors at the BPGO Trophy, and now there are 36 for the Solitaire, which are good numbers. The Figaro remains a relatively affordable class and a safe haven in times of crisis, like now when sponsorship is difficult to secure. That said, the sailor profile has changed. My feeling is that there’s been a real pull from the Imoca and Class40 fleets, which have both expanded and attracted many skippers after three or four years in Figaro over the last five years. As a result, it’s opened the door to a lot of younger sailors. I also think many of them have a genuinely professional approach to offshore racing — they want to make it their career and see this circuit as a key stepping stone.
How do you feel they see you and Nicolas Lunven, both double winners of the Solitaire and back on the circuit this season?
I feel they’re both admiring and hugely respectful of the “status” we have today. Nico and I represent the sailors who fought to achieve results in Figaro and then build Imoca projects all the way through to competing in the Vendée Globe, so naturally, they look up to us a bit and would love to follow similar career paths. You can see in the way they look at us that they’re happy to have us back and racing against them. And they’re not shy about asking questions either — it’s genuinely enjoyable getting to know them, and I’m looking forward to spending a month with them on the Solitaire.
What would make this a successful Solitaire for you?
Given my current situation, it would be difficult for me today to say I’m aiming to win with three broken ribs, so I’ll be happy if I finish in the top 10. And if the game stays open with some tricky weather, I hope to do better and be one of the race protagonists. My experience obviously works in my favour because I know the boat well and know myself well too. That’s where I feel a bit caught between two stools: I can sense that I’m not far from having a really strong base level again and that my performance is coming back quickly, but I feel like I’m fighting against my physical limitations, which stop me from being too ambitious.
If I ask you for your top three picks for this Solitaire, who would you name?
I can’t not put Nico at the top. He’s managed his comeback brilliantly, won two races and is fully in the game. He’ll be the calm force he has always been and clearly the man to beat in this Solitaire. Second, I’d go with Tom Goron, a young sailor who’s really impressive — now it’s up to him to keep progressing. And third, Paul Morvan, one of those sailors who races like an old hand, with a very solid all-round game, very few mistakes or weak patches, always delivering the right speed and the right decisions.
“I’ve invested a huge amount of energy
into the future boat”
Will your season end after this Solitaire?
Yes, and that’s a good thing. I’m very happy with my comeback, but also happy to have some rest afterwards. I’m going to have almost a year without major sporting targets, and I need that break to come back physically and mentally refreshed for the launch of the new boat in spring 2027 and the full Imoca programme: four transats and a solo round-the-world race. I’ll still do a bit of racing, notably three 52 Super Series events with Paprec in the TP52, two in Lanzarote and one in Valencia. It’s going to be brilliant — a fantastic crew and an amazing boat.
Finally, on the Imoca side, where does the future Paprec stand today?
It’s still in its mould at Multiplast, with around one third of the structure completed. We’ll demould at the end of May to make room for Benjamin Dutreux, who will begin construction of his own boat. The cockpit is entering production, the deck is under construction, the design is 98% complete, we’ve almost finished the foils and we’re now working on ergonomic details. So we’re on schedule, highly motivated and really pleased with the level of knowledge we now have compared to last time. On the previous boat, we were very much following what Antoine Koch proposed and had limited capacity to challenge the different choices. Now, with three years of experience behind us, we come to the table with much stronger insight; we contribute more to the discussions and have more impact through our feedback and experience. Personally, I’ve invested a huge amount of energy into it, spending a lot of time with the design office trying to optimise everything down to the smallest detail.
How will this boat differ from the previous one?
I’m not going to tell you that now — I hope you’ll save another interview for later (Laughs)! If I had to give you a teaser, I’d say that we’ve found even more speed potential, but we’re not the only ones; our competitors have too. Some pretty bold designs are going to emerge this summer, and it’ll be fascinating to compare this new generation, with potentially very different design choices. On our side, we’re staying close to the philosophy of the previous boat, but with a fairly aggressive evolution of our design.
Photo : Julien Champolion / polaRYSE
