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Overcome handicap: Olivier Brisse, blind and navigator

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Giving up his passion was not an option. The sight, Olivier Brisse lost it gradually. Following a pigmentary retinopathy , this sea enthusiast understands, at the age of 27, that his life will not be the same. Because, how can you continue to indulge your passion for sailing when you lose your sight? Impossible for many. But not for everyone. And not for Olivier.

Olivier Brisse: a winning temperament

"On the ground, for someone who cannot see, it's terrible. There are obstacles everywhere, noise, it's very, very tiring, very stressful." For many of us, it is the sea and its vastness that is a source of stress. Olivier Brisse, blind for 20 years, sees it more as a space in which he can express himself.

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Helped by a mixed disabled crew , he travels for miles to quench his thirst for adventure. His biggest challenge to date? 68 days at sea to make the trip from Lorient to Mauritius, just that! And it will certainly not be the last.

Olivier Brisse holds another world record, that of the longest distance covered in windsurfing by a blind person: 1.1 kilometers at a speed of 43 km / h!

For him, handicap is certainly an obstacle, but not insurmountable. Above all, it is through his commitment that he also wishes to stand out. Because Olivier knows it, he is not an isolated case. Those they call the "disabled," of which he is certainly a part, he wishes to help them.

A voluntary and committed sailor

Olivier Brisse is in charge of communication at the association UNADEV (National Union of the Blind and Visually Impaired). Its hobbyhorse is the provision of resources to help the blind.

For the moment, the reality is cruel. While the inclusion of the disabled is a priority for the government every five years, it is clear that the result is not there.

"The blind and visually impaired have no shortage of will. They lack the means! " recalls the Federation of the Blind of France . Even today, the mobility of people with disabilities, blind or otherwise, is still largely insufficient. to overcome their handicap, can finally enable them to make things happen.

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