High seas adrenaline rushes through his veins!
The German sailing hero Boris Herrmann (42) and his team “Malizia” have endured the hellish race “Ocean Race 2023”. The ultimate challenge in sailing – perhaps even in the entire sporting world.
Racing around the globe on a racing yacht in tough competition with other offshore sailors – that’s no child’s play! But Herrmann rose to the challenge: in 2023 he set sail with his gem, the “Malizia”.
Insight into the interior of Herrmann’s racing yacht “Malizia”
BILD spoke to the adventurer, who rarely gives interviews and is currently sailing in the “Transat Jacques Vabre” race from Le Havre (France) to Martinique (Caribbean). Also because of his new book, which was written after his last adventure. It tells the gripping story of dramas experienced, intimate moments, self-discovery and the pure joy of competition. Title: “Ocean Race Adventure” (C. Bertelsmann).
What fascinates the man from Oldenburg so much about this wild sport?
Herrmann: “Sailing is my life; my parents gave it to me when I was born. I used to sail when I was a baby and it is much more than just a sport. It’s a life’s work.”
Herrmann about his racing yacht: “I would like to build another ship. Even better than this. You learn a lot from a process like this. I would like to compete in the next ‘Ocean Race’ as favorite.” He and his crew came third in the “Ocean Race 2023”.
He and his team have to live in just a few square meters while braving the elements and standing up to their competitors. Herrmann: “The whole team played well together. That’s the beauty of sailing. A showcase for how men and women can achieve the same amount together and have the same qualities for this sport. It’s not weightlifting.”
Boris Herrmann and his international team “Malizia” (from left): Rosalin, Boris, Nico, Antoine and Will
Herrmann would be lost without his team: Rosalin Kuiper (27), Will Harris (29), Nico Lunven (41) and Antoine Auriol (39) race across the water with him. They are the power team that drives the “Malizia” across the endless oceans at breathtaking speed.
The sailor: “We can work here in the same class with men and women and also compete against each other. You can also see: Now in the Jacques (race) there is currently a woman in the lead, Justine Mettraux. And Samantha Davies is also in front of us here in the classroom. So what I’m trying to say is that the best in our field are women.”
The waves are whipping outside: Rosalin Kuiper enjoys a moment on board the racing yacht
From the Southern Ocean to the North Atlantic, his crew experienced extreme situations in the “Ocean Race”: the mast threatened to break in the Arctic Ocean, Rosalin was thrown from her berth off Cape Horn, and the sailing professionals set a new world speed record in the North Atlantic.
Herrmann: “I have set or taken part in around twelve world records. Some of them have already been surpassed by others. The record during the ‘Ocean Race Stage 5’ was the longest distance over 24 hours.”
What does the adventurer miss on board? Herrmann sometimes longs for “normal life”, sleep and a bed
He continues: “We had incredible wind conditions that were consistent, both in direction and strength. Ideal for our ship, in terms of strength and wind angle. The sea conditions were right, everything was fine. This was the only way we could cover a large distance in 24 hours.”
Sometimes things break! Repair work in the middle of the sea
Are you an adventurer?
“Yes, the adventure component is important. But I’m also a competitor, I’m a competitor, I’m a techie. I love these ships. I’m also a climate activist, I would sign that too.”
Boris Herrmann has summarized his memories of his previous race in a great book
But what particularly excites him is the adventure. “Going out into the ocean is always a leap into the unknown, it is always a confrontation with nature, which is stronger in the end. Which is unpredictable. And that’s what makes it so attractive. We hardly have this in our everyday experience anymore. Everything is predictable, plannable. Days at sea are always a surprise. What will happen today?”
Boris Herrmann’s experiences from the “Ocean Race”, in bookstores from November 15th
