48-year-old Yannick Bestaven, the winner of this year's ninth edition of the Vendée Globe has won the French Sailor of the Year Award in Paris.

Before his title of Sailor of the Year presentation, Bestaven was awarded the Legion of Honor by the President of the Republic of France for his victory in the non-stop solo round-the-world race, 

Yannick is respected in France for his 'availability', his commitment and his ability to share his passion beyond sports performance.

Yannick was born in Saint Nazaire, then spent his childhood in Arcachon. He was introduced to sailing from an early age. Barely finished his engineering studies, Yannick took an interest in competition and more particularly in ocean racing. It was during a decisive meeting with the navigator Yves Parlier in 2000, that Yannick embarked on transoceanic competition by entering the 2001 mini-transat (6.50m monohull) which he won conclusively.

On winning the award, Bestaven, Sailor of the Year 2021, said:  “There are quite a few beautiful names on this trophy. It is an honour for me to be on this list of great sailors. My victory in the Vendée Globe means a lot of work, time spent on the water and preparation. We race alone but we don't do anything alone. This trophy, I dedicate it to my partners, my team, my family and my loved ones. "