“It’s just incredible”: sailor Alexia Barrier becomes the first woman to complete the Route du Rhum in Ultim

The sailor who grew up in Nice has just completed her Route du Rhum on Wednesday November 11, arriving in Pointe-à-Pitre, in Guadeloupe. She is the first woman to finish this legendary race in the Ultim category.

After several technical problems, a torn mainsail, a damaged winch and a lack of wind, sailor Alexia Barrier managed to complete her Route du Rhum. She arrived Wednesday, November 11 in Pointe-à-Pitre, Guadeloupe at 3:42 p.m. local time and 8:42 p.m. Paris time.

La Niçoise came in fifth position in the Ultim class maxi-trimaran boat category of this race, after just over 10 days 7 hours and 40 minutes at sea. There were three retirements among the eight participants in this category: Armel Le Cléac'h, Charles Caudrelier and Anthony Marchand. “I feel so privileged. I am proud of myself, I am 400% proud of my team,” she declared at the end of this race.

Only woman in her category

She completed this legendary solo race across the oceans aboard an Ultim trimaran, the Idec Sport-CIC. She is also the first woman in history to complete the Route du Rhum in this category of boat. She sets the new women's record for this event. Of the 115 skippers at the start of the Route du Rhum, in Saint-Malo, on November 1, only eleven were women. “Twenty minutes before crossing the line, I was crying. I realized what I had just accomplished: becoming the first woman in history to participate in this race on this type of boat. It’s just incredible,” she said happily upon arrival in Pointe-à-Pitre.

In a logbook updated almost every day, the navigator recounted her journey through videos or even vocals.

Thus, on Tuesday, November 10, Alexia Barrier said that she was going to experience "a lack of wind", "for 24 hours", although very close to her final goal and the end of the race. A few days earlier, the sailor faced damage “during the night of November 7 to 8: the mainsail tore,” her team mentioned on their Facebook page.

In a video published on the Route du Rhum Youtube channel, in which she filmed herself, she explained that this race was more difficult than she thought.

She says: "I was cold, I was hungry, I was in pain, I was afraid, I cried, I tore a little piece of my mainsail, I had technical problems which required me to find solutions and adapt. But I never regretted being in this race. Not at a single moment."

Accustomed to extreme challenges

This is not the sailor's first major maritime challenge... Alexia Barrier completed her sailing trip around the world in less than 80 days for the Jules Verne trophy... just 10 months ago. On January 26, 2026, she arrived with an all-female crew. A non-stop, unassisted world tour completed in 57 days. A historic record for a female crew.

A little earlier, in 2021, she became the 10th woman to complete a Vendée Globe. On board the oldest boat in the fleet, she arrived 24th. It was then his very first world tour.

She is already planning to complete a next race in 2028, the Arkéa Ultim Challenge in Brest.