The crew led by Thomas Coville, Helly Hansen ambassador and skipper of the ocean trimaran Sodebo Ultim 3, set a new nonstop round-the-world sailing record, winning the prestigious Trophée Jules Verne.
On 25 January 2026, the crew led by Thomas Coville – Helly Hansen ambassador and skipper of the ocean trimaran, Sodebo Ultim 3 – has set a new world record for sailing nonstop around the world, winning the Trophée Jules Verne.
The Trophée Jules Verne is one of the most extreme challenges in sailing: a circumnavigation eastward from and back to the island of Ouessant in Brittany, with few course restrictions beyond avoiding Antarctic icebergs and complete freedom of choice in vessel and crew, as long as it’s sailed.
Sodebo Ultim 3, skippered by legendary French sailor, Thomas Coville – who has completed ten circumnavigations, five of them solo – completed the journey in much less time than the 80 days imagined by the novelist for whom the trophy is named. The voyage started on 15 December and took 40 days, 10 hours, 45 minutes and 50 seconds, beating the previous record held since 2017 by Idec Sport, by 12 hours and 44 minutes.
During their round-the-world passage, the Sodebo Ultim 3 crew celebrated both Christmas and New Year onboard, and secured the Trophée Jules Verne and set new intermediate reference times at the equator and the passage of three ocean capes: Cape of Good Hope, Cape Leeuwin and the legendary, Cape Horn.
This marks the tenth time a new record has been established, a series that began in 1993 when Bruno Peyron and his crew on Commodore Explorer completed the first official circumnavigation of the globe in 79 days.
Everything about the Trophée Jules Verne is on a massive scale – from the nautical miles covered (the theoretical minimum is 21,600 nm, but in practice, boats sail significantly more) to the size of the vessels. Sodebo Ultim 3 is a 32m long, 23m wide Ultim trimaran with a 34m mast carrying up to 697 m² of sail in maximum configuration.
A defining feature of these multihulls is their foils, hydrodynamic appendages that many sailors are familiar with from recent America’s Cup campaigns. The foils lift the hulls out of the water to greatly reduce drag. In light winds, Sodebo Ultim 3 can sail at up to three times the wind speed, with top speeds around 50 knots (90 km/h).
Thomas Coville, skipper of Sodebo Ultim 3, isn’t new to this sort of record. In 1997 and 2010 he won the Trophée Jules Verne as part of the crew on Sport-Elec and Groupama 3 respectively, and in 2017, he set the solo around-the-world record in just over 49 days (later broken by François Gabart). But the Trophée Jules Verne as skipper had been in his sights for many seasons — this was his eighth attempt since 2016.
In the past, Coville was stopped by boat failures or unfavorable conditions. This time, everything aligned: a rapid descent down the Atlantic where he built more than 1,500 nm advantage on the Idec reference time, then a challenging phase in the Indian Ocean that erased the lead, a clean passage through the Southern Ocean where he maintained a virtual lead, and finally a strong push back up toward Brittany.
Throughout the record-breaking voyage, the Sodebo Ultim 3 crew relied on technical sailing gear from Helly Hansen, the leading global sailing brand trusted by professionals around the world. The conditions encountered during the round-the-world race are the most extreme, from the freezing cold of the Antarctic Sea to the humid heat of the tropics. With their bodies already put to the test by uninterrupted sailing, an unconventional sleep-wake cycle and the constant pressure to steer the boat to its absolute limits, protection from cold, water and humidity is a key element for success. For Helly Hansen, the insights and feedback gathered by professional sailors, such as Thomas Coville, are a fundamental and valuable element in developing the technical gear used by the crew.
Following the announcement of the record-breaking victory, Øyvind Vedvik, VP for Outdoor, Winter Sport and Sailing at Helly Hansen, commented, “Congratulations to Thomas Coville and the entire Sodebo team on an exceptional achievement! This record highlights both the scale of the challenge and the level of performance required to achieve it. We are incredibly proud of our longstanding collaboration with Thomas Coville and we’re honoured to be able to support teams operating at the very highest level of offshore sailing.”
For nearly 150 years, Helly Hansen has been driven by innovation and shaped by extreme environments. Continuously at the forefront of technical sailing apparel, the Norway-based brand works closely with professional offshore sailors to elevate and refine their designs, including the Ægir Ocean Jacket 2.0 and Ægir Ocean Bib 2.0, which were worn by the Sodebo Ultim 3 crew.
Both the jacket and bib are built with Helly Hansen’s most waterproof fabric construction, HELLY TECH® Professional. The advanced 3-ply fabric construction features a multi-layered composite membrane that is highly protective and fully waterproof, and by using premium quality recycled nylon yarns originating from recycled fish nets, the face fabric is even sturdier for sailing-grade performance.
The Ægir Ocean Jacket 2.0 also features a new modular 3-piece collar. The fixed collar houses a packable hi-vis hood with a transparent UV-protective visor, while an additional and easily detachable collar extension includes a face mask for protection in even the most extreme conditions. To enhance ease of use, the advanced front YKK AQUASEAL® 2-way access zip is completely waterproof, removing the need for a placket and the now seamless shoulders ensure even less chance of water leaking through your layers.
The Ægir Ocean Bib 2.0 boasts a completely redesigned and versatile, adjustable suspender for a more universal fit for varying body types. To match the jacket, the front placket was removed and zip replaced with a 2-way YKK AQUASEAL®. Improved and ergonomic knee pads, inspired by Helly Hansen’s workwear line, now come with the bibs and are easily removed when not needed.
To learn more about Helly Hansen’s Ægir offshore collection, please visit: www.hellyhansen.com/en_gb.