CIC Becomes Title Partner of The Famous Project

Départ de la CIC Med Channel Race en rade de Marseille, le 27 Avril 2025, Photo © Jean-Marie LIOT / CIC Med Channel Race

French bank CIC has officially become the title partner of The Famous Project CIC, Alexia Barrier's ambitious project designed to break the Jules Verne Trophy record with an all-female crew — a first in over 27 years.

You can read the original press release by CIC in French here.

CIC has been a Founding Partner of The Famous Project since the beginning, and what began as early-stage support has now grown into full-fledged title sponsorship with the team becoming The Famous Project CIC.

Daniel Baal, Chairman of the CIC, said: "At CIC, we are convinced that Alexia's project will be a great success as she aims to complete the Trophy Jules Verne and set an all-female reference time. This is a daring project, as we know, only one female crew has attempted the Jules Verne Trophy, and that was 27 years ago. This is going to be an exceptional adventure that we look forward to sharing with our employees, our customers and the general public. Supporting the project goes beyond just investing financially, it's also about shared values, such as team spirit, pushing limits, resilience and shared ventures."

"I'd like to recognise the CIC's courage getting involved in such a different kind of sailing and sporting project, this is certainly not your average team, and by supporting us today, they are doing something we haven't seen with the Jules Verne Trophy since the attempt made by British sailor Tracy Edwards 27 years ago. By becoming our Title Partner CIC is making another strong gesture in support for women's sport, showing they are not only committed to our team, but the industry as a whole." explains Skipper Alexia Barrier.

"This message goes beyond sporting performance," says Claude Koestner, CIC's Deputy Chief Executive Officer. "Supporting Alexia means supporting female-led initiatives in all their diversity. On a day-to-day basis, with our customers or with our employees, it means providing the same support and equal attention to all those who approach us. Regardless the gender of the project leader".

As the legendary maxi-trimaran IDEC Sport - still the current Jules Verne Trophy record holder* - arrives in Brest, her new home port until the start of the attempt, the team at The Famous Project CIC is deep in preparation. “It was really important for us to get to grips with the boat and keep sailing the MOD70,” says skipper Alexia Barrier. “Today, we know we’ll be ready to start in the right conditions.” Between now and the record window this autumn, the crew has a realistic and focused sporting programme lined up: training throughout the summer, a record attempt around the British Isles at the end of July, and an Atlantic record bid in August along the historic Discovery Route — from Cádiz in Spain to San Salvador in the Bahamas. The trimaran will then go into refit from late August through to the end of September, before going on stand-by for the team’s record attempt.

*The Jules Verne Trophy record has been held since 2017 by French Skipper Francis Joyon and his 5-man crew, in 40 days, 23 hours, 30 minutes and 30 seconds.