Tom Dolan Debuts in IMOCA Race with Jérémie Beyou

24th June 2025

Afloat.ie Team

Tom Dolan joins the Charal crew for his first IMOCA race, guided by experienced skipper Jérémie Beyou

Irish solo sailor Tom Dolan is set to make his debut in IMOCA racing. The reigning champion of the Solitaire du Figaro joins skipper Jérémie Beyou aboard Charal for the Course des Caps. The race begins on 29 June.

Dolan expressed his excitement: “I’m living a dream, heading offshore in an IMOCA.” He is part of a talented crew, including Nicolas Andrieu and Lou Berthomieu.

Onboard Jérémie Beyou's Charal: an elite line-up featuring Nicolas Andrieu, Lou Berthomieu—a renowned name in Olympic sailing, Tom Dolan, Figaor champion and Marin Le Roux, Onboard reporter.

The Course des Caps covers nearly 2,000 nautical miles around the British Isles and Ireland. Dolan, familiar with the Irish coastline, described the route as "wild."

The Course des Caps covers nearly 2,000 nautical miles around the British Isles and Ireland

He will take on navigation and weather analysis roles during the race. “Racing as a crew means the workload is better shared,” Dolan noted.

This experience is a stepping stone towards his ambition to complete the Vendée Globe. As Afloat reported previously, the Irish Sailor of the Year aims to helm his own boat in the future and be the first Irishman to complete the race.

Published in Tom Dolan, Vendee Globe

Published in Tom Dolan

Tagged under

About The Author

Afloat.ie Team

Email The Author

Afloat.ie is Ireland's dedicated marine journalism team.

Have you got a story for our reporters? Email us here.

We've got a favour to ask

More people are reading Afloat.ie than ever thanks to the power of the internet but we're in stormy seas because advertising revenues across the media are falling fast. Unlike many news sites, we haven't put up a paywall because we want to keep our marine journalism open.

Afloat.ie is Ireland's only full-time marine journalism team and it takes time, money and hard work to produce our content.

So you can see why we need to ask for your help.

If everyone chipped in, we can enhance our coverage and our future would be more secure. You can help us through a small donation. Thank you.

You might also want to read...

Tom Dolan, Solo Offshore Sailor

Even when County Meath solo sailor Tom Dolan had been down the numbers in the early stages of the four-stage 2,000 mile 2020 Figaro Race, Dolan and his boat were soon eating their way up through the fleet in any situation which demanded difficult tactical decisions.

His fifth overall at the finish – the highest-placed non-French sailor and winner of the Vivi Cup – had him right among the international elite in one of 2020's few major events.

The 33-year-old who has lived in Concarneau, Brittany since 2009 but grew up on a farm in rural County Meath came into the gruelling four-stage race aiming to get into the top half of the fleet and to underline his potential to Irish sailing administrators considering the selection process for the 2024 Olympic Mixed Double Offshore category which comes in for the Paris games.