Biography
Marie-Claude Heys (also known as Marie-Claude Kieffer Heys) is a French sailor who competed in several all-female crews in ocean races. Born in Brest, Brittany, she began sailing as a child and entered single-handed and crewed events from the early 1980s, including the Figaro race and the Tour de France à la Voile.
In 1986 she joined the yacht Maiden as first mate during its preparation for the Whitbread Round the World Race. She later raced the Whitbread on Heineken (1993–94) and EF Education (1997–98). Heys appears as herself in the 2019 documentary Maiden, which recounts the original all-female campaign. After retiring from professional sailing she co-founded Key Yachting in Hamble, UK.
