Legallais Sailing Team 2024

Born in Rouen on 7 July 1984, Fabien discovered sailing at the age of 9 in Ouistreham, in Normandy. Initially drawn to Olympic sailing, where he joined the French youth 470 team, he then opted for ocean racing. He spent 6 seasons on the demanding Figaro2 one-design circuit from 2009 to 2014, where he won a French Champion title and several podium places, including second place in the demanding “Solitaire du Figaro” race in 2011.

In 2013, he won the Transat Jacques Vabre alongside Sébastien Rogues in a Class40. Two years later, he became a coach and joined Jean-Pierre Dick’s team on the “Saint-Michel Virbac” foil boat IMOCA, where he was responsible for performance. The same year, Fabien took part alongside Jean-Pierre Dick in the Transat Jacques Vabre and then accompanied him to the Vendée Globe.

Fabien then left for 2 years on the mythical Ocean Race (formerly Volvo Ocean Race) with the Dongfeng team, as a sailor and responsible for the performance unit. A race of excellence that he won! In 2019, Fabien returned to the Figaro circuit with his new Figaro3 one-design foil boat. He spent three seasons racing single-handed and achieved podium places in the French Elite Championship and 5th and 6th places in the renowned “Solitaire du Figaro” race. At the same time, Fabien secured 2nd place on the podium in the Transat Jacques Vabre Class40 race with Sam Goodchild in 2019. His talent led him to share cockpits with some of the biggest names in ocean racing: Charles Caudrelier, Yoann Richomme, Paul Meilhat and Armel Le Cléac’h.

2023 promises to be a big year for Fabien: while managing Team Holcim-PRB’s performance alongside Kévin Escoffier on the new edition of The Ocean Race during the round-the-world stopovers, he became the official skipper of the Legallais Sailing Team on the Class40 circuit.

Benjamin Schwartz grew up in Lyon, 300 kilometers from the sea, where he discovered his passion for sailing as a child.

He made his debut in the world of ocean racing during the 2017-2018 Volvo Ocean Race. He then joined Dongfeng Race Team, the winning round-the-world crew led by Charles Caudrelier. Subsequently, he continued his solo career with a season in Figaro 3 in 2019, without a sponsor. Despite this, he finished 4th in the Solo Maître CoQ, the first race of the season, then 6th overall and 1st rookie in the Solitaire du Figaro, despite a collision with Alain Gautier just before the start of the 2nd stage of the Solitaire between Kinsale and Roscoff. This performance earned him the title of French Elite offshore racing champion in 2019.

At the same time, Benjamin Schwartz works as electronics manager within Team Spindrift, both on the D35 and on the maxi-trimaran. He also took part in record attempts for the Jules Verne Trophy, a crewed round-the-world sailing trip.

In 2020, he won the European Offshore Championship in mixed doubles with Marie Riou, in Genoa (Italy). Planning to represent France at the Olympic Games in 2024 for a new ocean racing event, the event was finally abandoned by the IOC.

In 2021, he joined Nicolas Troussel and embarked on the Imoca Corum l’EPARGNE for The Ocean Race Europe, where he won a stage between Lorient and Cascais. He then joins the Holcim-PRB crew on The Ocean Race 2023-24, where he will take on the role of skipper from the 6th stage.

In January 2024, he joined the routing cell of the Trimaran Banque Populaire skippered by Charles Caudrelier for the solo round-the-world trip, the Arkea Ultim Challenge.

For the rest of the season, Benjamin Schwartz joins the Legallais Team Voile and becomes the co-skipper of Fabien Delahaye. Together, they will compete in the Quebec – Saint-Malo and the CIC Normandy Channel Race.

Originally from the Orne region, Henri has always been drawn to the sea. His first maritime experience came at the age of 14, when he spent a year on a boat. At the age of 18, he left Normandy for Brittany. With his baccalaureate diploma in hand, he enrolled in a 2-year higher education certificate (BTS) in Management, followed by a professional degree in tropical agriculture, which he completed in La Réunion. But the call of the open sea proved too strong for Henri, who decided to take a state diploma (Brevet d’État) in sailing and spent a few years in the West Indies as a leisure boat skipper.

When his first child was born, Henri decided to return to France. Interested in racing but lacking a network, he joined the 1st class of ocean racing sailboat preparers (“Préparateur de Voiliers au course au large”) organised by AFPA in Lorient. After 6 months of intensive training, he was immediately offered an assignment with Xavier Macaire. Henri made a name for himself and worked with several skippers, mainly on the Figaro circuit.

He crossed paths with Fabien Delahaye several times, but never worked with him. In 2022, he decided to ask him to assist him in his Class40 project. Accustomed to “Figaro” projects, Henri will be working for the first time on the Class40 circuit alongside a structured team with a wide range of skills. “The Legallais Sailing Team project is really exciting in a high-level Class40 circuit”; concluded Henri.