Born in Munich to a German father and a French mother, Isabelle JOSCHKE grew up between Geneva and the Paris region. Nothing about her suggested that she might one day become a sailor, and yet… The initial trigger was her family holidays in the Austrian lakes, where she discovered sailing aboard an Optimist. She was only five years old, but this experience had already given her a zest for the open ocean.
Fifteen years later, her passion for sailing definitively took hold during a training session at the Glénans sailing school. Whilst studying literature at the Sorbonne, Isabelle embarked on a yacht being delivered to Brazil. It proved to be a revelation: she would make the sea her profession. Having just graduated with a Masters in the Classics, she took two diplomas; one to become a sports instructor and the other a skipper.
At the start of her career, her voyages led her to the West Indies, to the United States and to Mediterranean waters. Passing through Lorient, she crossed paths with the Mini sailors and fell in love with the discipline. That’s all it took for Isabelle, then aged twenty-seven, to set sail on the crazy Mini Transat adventure and buy her first boat. In 2007, she participated in the event a second time and won the first leg of the transatlantic race. Her victory revealed the offshore racing world to her, which she will never leave.
At 40 years of age, Isabelle has a solid background in the domain of offshore racing, no matter what craft (Mini 6.50, Figaro, Class 40, IMOCA). Committed to gender equality, she has every intention of being a part of the very tight inner circle of women signed up to the start of a Vendée Globe and is seeking to participate in the 2020 edition.
At 40 years old, Isabelle has a solid experience in the world of ocean racing, which she was able to learn on board various boats (Mini 6.50, Figaro, Class 40, IMOCA). Committed to gender equality, she intends to join the very closed circle of women in the Vendée Globe. On November 8, 2020, she will set off on board the IMOCA MACSF. After a cautious start, the skipper came back in contact with the leading pack where she fought fiercely until January 9th, when her false keel cylinder broke, forcing her to abandon. After a technical stop in Salvador de Bahia, the sailor set sail again, determined to finish her journey. Joined by Sam Davies, also out of the race, Isabelle Joschke will finish her round the world voyage on February 24, thus completing her challenge.
She will be back at sea in 2021, still supported by MACSF, until the next Vendée Globe. She will take part in all the 2022 solo races and will be at the start of the double-handed races with Pierre Brasseur in 2023.
The goal is to ensure my qualification for the Vendée Globe. And the first mission will be to make sure I'm at the start at the end of what promises to be a particularly testing Transat Jacques Vabre. Time will be very short between the end of this first transatlantic race and the second, so it will be important to have a boat in good condition for this new Atlantic crossing.
When you're a small sailor like me, things change enormously. When you're sailing solo, the maneuvers are much longer, much more intense, and you need a lot more recovery time. Being double-handed allows me to optimize this time and pay more attention to the smallest details. Switching to solo sailing after the Transat Jacques Vabre will be quite a challenge!
I'm going to try to find a very quiet place, if possible as close to nature as possible, close to the forest for example. Last year, I was in accommodation like that in Guadeloupe after the Route du Rhum. It's a great way to recharge your batteries: in three days, I felt like I'd recovered the equivalent of six days!
2022
Route du Rhum - 9e
Défi Azimut - 14e
Guyader Bermudes 1000 Race - 5e
2021
Transat Jacques Vabre - 12e
Défi Azimut - Lorient Agglomération - 8e
Rolex Fastnet Race - 9e
2020
Vendée Globe - Abandon - finished out of the race
Défi Azimut - 3e
Vendée-Arctique-Les Sables d'Olonne - 13e
2018
Dhream-Cup 700 - 2e
2017
Transat Jacques Vabre - 8e
2015
Winner of Women's Cup
2008
First woman to win a Figaro 2 leg
2007
Winner of the first leg of the Mini Transat
Name : MACSF
Architect : VPLP / Verdier
Building : 2007, Chantier Naval de Larros
Launching : 08/06/2007
Old names : SAFRAN, Quéguiner – Leucémie Espoir, Sensations I, Generali, Monin
Lenght : 18,28m
Beam : 5,70m
Draught : 4,50m
Weight : 8 tonnes
Mast height : 29m
Mast type : Mât-aile
Foils : yes
Upwind : 300 m2
Downwind : 650 m2
MACSF
MACSF is a mutual insurance company dedicated to healthcare professionals. It insures the private and professional lives of more than one million members. Since its creation, the group has been chaired and governed by directors who also come from the medical professions. MACSF has been involved in sailing since 1979. Since its first sailing partnership with health student Olivier Moussy, the group has shared the spirit of solidarity and humanism of this discipline with its 1,600 employees and over a million members. Since 2019, MACSF has been involved in a sailing partnership with skipper Isabelle Joschke and her team manager Alain Gautier, winner of the 1992 Vendée Globe. In 2021, after three years of partnership and a remarkable round-the-world voyage, the mutual insurer and the skipper have decided to continue their adventure until 2025, culminating in the 2024 Vendée Globe.
