Interview with Alan Roura, sailor and ambassador Hublot

Alan Roura is one of Hublot’s most adventurous ambassadors. Since 2022, the Swiss skipper and watch maison have been crossing oceans, engaged in some of the world’s toughest regattas. On the sailor’s wrist, the Nyon-based brand puts the best watch technology of which it is capable, which becomes an instrument thanks to which Roura tackles the waves while remaining master of time.

On 10 November, Roura will set off to race the tenth edition of the Vendée Globe, a non-stop round-the-world regatta for Imoca 60-class yachts with a crew of one. The start and finish will be in Les Sables-d’Olonne, France, and the competition promises to once again be a tough challenge. We interviewed the sailor who, at the helm of his boat named Hublot, will be accompanied by a new watch, the Big Bang Unico Sailing Team, produced in a limited edition of 100 pieces.

Why did Hublot and you choose each other as ambassador and partner? What are your shared values? 

Hublot and I talked for maybe five years before signing up for this project together, we had great timing: they wanted to have their own project, branded Hublot 100%, and I wanted their brand because for me it was a young Swiss-made watch brand – and I didn’t know then but a young, really friendly team was working together. And we had the same point of view on how we were going to build this project, how we were going to make it happen, and what we wanted to show and share with people. It took us a bit of time to build all of this together, but today I think that we managed to complete a really nice project, really human and I think this is how Hublot works: it’s a lot about humans and relations with people, and that’s exactly what our project represents. 

You love to do solo ocean crossings: what skills are needed to go through that, and how different is it from sailing with other people?

I love sailing solo, there’s a bit of a difference between sailing solo and with a crew. I actually started racing by sailing solo so I don’t really know, in fact, what I would need to do with a crew, I’ve done some of that but not on the same level. You need to know everything when you’re by yourself, how to fix the boat, how to make it fast, how to sleep, how to eat, how to make sure your body is strong enough to spend maybe 100 days at sea nonstop. You need to know about twenty different jobs to fix the boat and some ten other jobs to make the boat go fast so, really, it’s a complete sailing experience you go through as a solo sailor.

Nowadays, even in sailing technology prevails but you choose to trust a mechanical watch such as Hublot’s Big Bang Unico: why is that?

Sailing is about technology but it’s also a mechanical sport, and sailing is really close to watches. For example, if we’re talking about the Big Bang Unico and a sailing boat, you get nearly the same thing: if something inside has a little problem it won’t work, and a sailing boat is exactly the same. All the pieces need to be perfect, adjusted and made by hand, and for me this is… all sailors are a bit in love with watches because the same philosophy applies to a racing boat and a nice watch, so for me it’s not about less technology but it’s about dealing with a watch and its mechanical system.

You have a special passion for the Vendée Globe. Where does that come from?

My passion for the Vendée Globe began when I was maybe 8 or 9 years old, I was sailing with my family around the world and I crossed a Mini Transat race, so I saw a small sailing boat, 21foot, crossing the Atlantic and I fell in love… and I decided that I would do this kind of sailing experience one day. That’s how I started racing. Since I was 8 or 9 years old I just dreamed to participate in the Mini Transat and the Vendée Globe races one day, and that’s what I’ve done.

Beside the partnership with Hublot, what kind of relationship do you have with watches? Are you more of a lover or more of an expert?

My experience with Hublot watches is more about love than expertise, I mean, love for a nice watch, but I’m not an expert, I love some… des bijoux, I don’t know the word in English but necklaces and watches and earrings and piercings, I like that. And actually, watches are something that, when I was younger I was like ‘Why should I have some luxury watches?’. Well, watches for me are something beautiful and something that remains, I know that one day I will give my watch to my son or my daughter and they will pass it on to their children. It’s something that stays, like art, and I like that. 

Have you ever visited Hublot’s factory? If so, what were your impression and feelings about it?

I’ve been to the Hublot watch factory a few times and I totally love it. It’s so beautiful, so clean, so unique to see how it works, it’s so nice and you can actually meet everybody, talk to them and they will explain you exactly what their job is and how each person is important to build a watch. It takes so many people to build one watch, from the designer to the last person who builds it, it’s unbelievable. Last year I brought the whole Sailing Team there, at the beginning of the year, and it was just beautiful, we spent a few hours there and it was really really nice. 

Can you describe the creative process behind the new Big Bang Unico Sailing Team?

When we built the Hublot Big Bang Unico Sailing Team, we spent a few months talking to each other about how we were going to build it, what the design was going to be, how to make it look like the boat. We are really proud to be collaborating with the Hublot Sailing Team, to offer a bit of our point of view and knowledge, from carbon fibre to sailing, to understand how to make this watch resemble the real Sailing Team. 

So, we got the composite materials, we sent some pieces of the boat, of our boat, to make the same design as our hull. I decided its looks, the colours and everything, and some small details like the SUA Sailing Team number 7 on it. We managed to really work together with Hublot, to share both of our experiences and to build this watch together and I think it’s a beautiful watch, it’s really beautiful, it’s really light to wear, it’s carbon. I’m really in love with it, it’s my favourite!

By Davide Passoni