Alessandro Di Benedetto - Skipper Portrait 'Masters Of The Seas'

by Leslie Greenhalgh on 8 Aug 2014 Born in Roma, Alessandro Di Benedetto has Italian and French dual nationality. He started sailing at the early age of six, initially with his parents and then in the Optimist class, and then he started sailing school in Sicily. 'I developed a love of sailing back then that has never left me.' He now lives in La Chaume, in Les Sables D’Olonne, a town where he is also Citizen of Honour.

The route of Alessandro is a bit unusual for those in the IMOCA Ocean Masters circuit. Before he became a professional skipper, he worked as a geologist. He carried out projects such as sailing across the Atlantic with his father in his catamaran, between Sicily and Martinique. He repeated this same route in 2002, but this time solo.

In 2006 he set a world record crossing the North Pacific in a Hobie Cat, between Yokohama and San Francisco and it was during this journey that he realized that he was ready to tackle another dream - to sail around the world. In 2010, he embarked on the adventure on a Mini 6.50 he adapted for the occasion, and completed the Vendée Globe route from Les Sables d'Olonne and back to Sables d'Olonne, with the same rules as the world tour passing the three capes, solo, nonstop and unassisted. He was the first person to achieve this record on a boat of this size and set a new world record.

At the arrival at the end of this trip, he was offered a bottle of champagne at his table, 'It was Didier Elin, the President of Team Plastique, the now owner of my IMOCA 60 boat and my current sponsor.' They quickly decided to get involved together in a Vendée Globe project. With the support of a number of sub-sponsors, Alessandro completed this project and finished in 11th place in the 2012-13 Vendée Globe. 'I think we had great courage to take on this amazing adventure, such a big race, with world famous skippers, as well as big global brands. That is one of the amazing things about the Vendée Globe event, and the races of the IMOCA Ocean Masters World Championship in general, they allow smaller companies to get involved and tell some amazing stories.'

'The impact of the sponsorship was incredible in terms of profile, recognition of the brand and client relationships for Team Plastique.'

Alessandro has now completed two round the world tours and speaks with amazing passion and a lot of emotion about them. 'It was an incredible adventure, part of the school of life. It allows you to think outside of the little problems that you encounter whilst on land; We can dip into those treasures and memories that we gather, that we have lived through, traded or shared.'

'I have great memories of IMOCA sailing, times like passing Cape Horn during the Vendée Globe. The start and finish of the race were also incredible moments, thousands of people lining the canal. At the start they are there for all the skippers, but at the finish they are there to greet only you, that brings tears to the eyes, it’s amazing.'

Alessandro is taking part in the next Route du Rhum this year, on his own IMOCA 60, before finding more sponsors to be able to take part in the Transat Jacques Vabre and for sure in the 2016 Vendée Globe, on a more advanced and newer boat.

'The Team Plastique IMOCA 60 has some limitations as it is a 1998 boat, with a fixed keel, without daggerboards. But it’s still an attractive boat, despite being one of the heaviest in the fleet, it can still surf along at 30 knots and that is pure joy to experience.'

'The IMOCA class is still an open class, it is still possible to invest time and effort into evolving the boats even further. They are very powerful, and since they are monohulls, you can get them to nearly 100% of their potential, even sailing them solo. And IMOCA 60s are the boats of the Vendée Globe, a race that still remains today one of the most important in the world and the most interesting from the sporting point of view for solo sailors.'

The French-Italian skipper sums up : 'I think it’s really important for skippers from different nationalities to take part in the World Championship, French but also Spanish, English, Americans, Chinese….that would create a really great atmosphere, gather even more interest and allow companies from different markets to join the circuit. I think there is a lot more work to be done, but I am sure that the new IMOCA Ocean Masters circuit will only add value.'