Bertrand Piccard

Born in Lausanne (Switzerland) and descendant of a dynasty of explorers and scientists, who have conquered the heights and the depths of our planet, Bertrand Piccard seems predestined to perpetuate one of the greatest family adventures of the 20th century.

Psychiatrist, aeronaut and internationally renowned lecturer, president of the humanitarian foundation "Winds of Hope" and goodwill ambassador for the United Nations, he uses his family heritage to deal with today's global challenges. Pioneer of hangliding and microlight flying, European hang-glider acrobatics champion and winner of the first transatlantic balloon race, Bertrand Piccard is also the initiator of the Breitling Orbiter project. In 1999 he was the pilot in command of the first non-stop round the world balloon flight.

Thanks to his experiences, he launched in 2003 the Solar Impulse project, to take on a new challenge: flying round the world in an airplane propelled uniquely by solar energy, without fuel or pollution, in order to promote the immense potential of renewable energies and their new technologies.