Dimitri's role
Date of Birth: January 27, 1974
Birthplace: Villeneuve d’Ascq, France
Nationality: French
Position: Structural and Mechanical Engineer
A valued mechanical engineer, Despierres has worked on a myriad of projects since joining ORACLE Racing in October 2003. Rarely does he find one day similar to the next.
“The most rewarding part of my job is working at the pinnacle of our sport and waking up every day knowing it will definitely be different, with new challenges and great tasks to achieve, manage and deal with,” says Dimitri. “You know that you won’t get bored by doing the same things!”
For the 33rd Cup Despierres was in charge of the wing design for USA 17 and support of the on-site build team. For the 34th Cup he’s mostly involved in the wing and its control systems, designing some of the systems and relevant structures to achieve the best performance.
Despierres joined the America’s Cup scene as a trimmer for the French challenge in 2000. His background as a mechanical engineer led to him being part of the design team for the 2003 French challenge, for which he also was a trimmer. Dimitri has competed on the match race circuit with skipper Sébastien Col, with whom he won the French National Match Race Championship three times.
Outside of yachting Despierres and his wife Valerie have sponsored for the past three years an 8-year-old Tibetan child in her studies in India, and are committed to supporting her through her university level studies.
“Yang La is now 8 years old and speaks fluent English, which will give her a great advantage in life. She’ll be able to defend her culture and transmit her knowledge to other people at some age,” says Dimitri. “It is surely a small drop in a big ocean, but as a mechanical engineer I also know that it can cause a chain reaction, like the butterfly effect,” says Dimitri.
Career Highlights
2010: 33rd America’s Cup, BMW ORACLE Racing, winner
2007: Louis Vuitton Cup, BMW ORACLE Racing, 4th place
2003: Louis Vuitton Cup, le Défi Français
2000: Louis Vuitton Cup, le Défi Français, semifinalist
3-time French National Match Race Champion