The New York Vendée - Les Sables d'Olonne is the second of two solo transatlantic races. Boris Herrmann claimed a fantastic second place finish in the thrilling outbound leg, the Transat CIC from Lorient to New York, overcoming some challenging conditions early in the race. On arrival into New York he gave his reaction, saying: “It gave me confidence for the Vendée Globe, which was my main objective. I also validated my Vendée Globe qualification, and this is my best IMOCA result.”
In between races, Team Malizia focus on raising awareness about the need to protect the ocean, in line with their mission ‘A Race We Must Win – Climate Action Now!’ and sustainability was high on the agenda in New York. A ‘My Ocean Challenge’ event for 100 children at the UN’s International School demonstrated once again how science combined with sport can help educate young people about the impact of climate change and inspire them to be a part of the solution.
At the Malizia Ocean Conference ‘Preserving our high seas: A call to action for ocean protection’, a prestigious panel of experts and advocates, including world renowned Oceanographer, Explorer and Ocean Ambassador, Dr Sylvia Earle, highlighted the importance of preserving the environment for future generations. The debate focused in particular on the high seas as the UN’s treaty will play a critical role in safeguarding these vast areas of the ocean, home to such an enormous diversity of marine life.
Team Malizia’s week ended in style with the Vendée Liberty on 24 May, a spectacular exhibition race featuring the whole IMOCA fleet, which took place in front of the Statue of Liberty.
With less than six months to go to the start of the Vendée Globe, Team Malizia’s focus is now on perfecting the detail, in order to put them in the strongest position. Their strategy from the offset was to build Malizia – Seaexplorer early in 2022, put her to the test as a team during The Ocean Race in 2023 and then log as many solo miles as possible in racing mode during 2024. Speaking in New York, Boris Herrmann’s verdict was that “Malizia is Vendée Globe ready!”
The New York Vendée race starts on Wednesday, 29 May at 20:00 CEST and the fleet is estimated to arrive back in Les Sables d’Olonne from 07-09 June 2024. You can follow the race tracker here. Bon Voyage!