Triumphs, trials and team spirit: Team Malizia’s 2023 in review

The Ocean Race

The Ocean Race is a six month, seven-leg circumnavigation of the globe and one of the toughest team challenges in sport. It is designed to test the limits of human endurance and push the boundaries of technology.

After sailing 37,202 nautical miles, Team Malizia ended The Ocean Race in style, winning the seventh leg at the Grand Finale in Genova and securing a podium place in the overall rankings. They also won the brutal, one-month long marathon third leg and broke the world monohull distance record during leg five, after covering an amazing 641.13 nautical miles in 24 hours.

Here’s a fantastic recap of Team Malizia’s Ocean Race adventure.

The best of the rest

After a well-earned break, it was back to racing mode for Boris Herrmann and co-skipper Will Harris as they took on the Défi Azimut and the Transat Jacques Vabre, where they finished a respectable seventh in both races, against a very competitive IMOCA fleet. Boris Herrmann then ended the year on a high with an impressive fourth place finish in the Retour à La Base race from Martinique to Lorient in France.

What’s on the horizon for 2024?

Malizia - Seaexplorer will undergo a winter re-fit before being launched with a brand new set of foils, ready to start the new season in April 2024 with the Transat CIC and the New York-Vendée transatlantic solo races.

The major focus in 2024 is the Vendée Globe, a single-handed solo non-stop around the world yacht race described as the ‘Everest of the Seas’. It promises to be an exceptional race, with around 40 skippers and boats expected to line up at the start. Boris Herrmann will be looking to build on Team Malizia’s successes from 2023 and his fifth-place finish in the Vendée Globe 2020/21. The 10^th edition of the Vendée Globe starts on 10 November 2024.

The other ‘Race We Must Win’

Team Malizia’s ‘A Race We Must Win’ mission refers not only to the physical races they compete in, but also to the race against time in the climate crisis. The team send rare scientific data from some the most remote parts of the world back to dedicated scientists, to help them better understand the impact of climate change on the oceans.

Team Malizia’s ‘My Ocean Challenge’ initiative also used the stopovers in The Ocean Race to raise awareness about the importance of ocean conservation amongst local children and inspire them to get involved.

Mastering the Waves

We also recognise the importance of protecting our natural environment and addressing challenges such as climate change. Recently in Venice, CEO of EFG International Giorgio Pradelli had a conversation with Boris Herrmann and Hermes Redi, who oversees all technical activities on the dam designed to protect Venice from flooding, about the topics of sustainability and resilience.

Here’s to a successful 2024

We have been proud to support Team Malizia and Boris Herrmann during 2023. The long-standing partnership is a testament to our shared values of teamwork, resilience, and the pursuit of excellence, as well as an ongoing commitment to sustainability. We will continue to follow their journey closely in 2024, so watch this space.