4 sources · updated 24 Oct 2026
Eugène Riguidel was born on 24 November 1940 in Arradon, Morbihan. He won the Cape Town–Rio race in 1971 and the Course de l'Aurore in 1974.
In 1978 he took part in the first Route du Rhum aboard the trimaran VSD and retired. The following year, with Gilles Gahinet on VSD, he won the Transat en double, beating the Tabarly–Pajot pair on Paul Ricard by 5 minutes 42 seconds.
In 1981 he won a leg of the Whitbread on Mor Bihan. In 1982 he sailed the Route du Rhum on the trimaran William Saurin (18th on elapsed time), then finished 2nd in the 1983 Lorient–Bermuda–Lorient double-handed transatlantic on the same boat, and 4th in the 1984 Québec–Saint-Malo.
He quit competition in 1985, tired of the sponsorship chase. He is known for his ecological and anti-nuclear activism, and sponsored Guirec Soudée's IMOCA in the 2022 Route du Rhum. He wrote several books, including 'Deux pour vaincre' (1979) and 'Les vents de novembre' (1983).