Alain Gautier was born on 8 May 1962 in Lorient, and is a French professional offshore sailor. He is best known for winning the 1992–1993 Vendée Globe. He currently heads Lanic Sport Development which was founded in 1989, specializing in the preparation of and assistance to offshore racing teams including those of Ellen MacArthur in 1998 and Isabelle Joschke in 2019. He headed with Bertrand Pacé the Aleph challenge for the 34th America's Cup in 2013 but the team never got the funding required. It competed in the America's Cup World Series on supplied AC45 catamarans before withdrawing.