Boris, how did you experience the SailGP?
I found Sassnitz very interesting! It was good to see this impressive setup. A cool spectacle! Lots of celebrities there, lots of business. I met a lot of interesting people. It was a lot of show, but also very nice for Sailing Germany. So chapeau! But I'm also glad to be where I am.
Did you enjoy the atmosphere on site?
The fan atmosphere was great, a real experience. Whether front, centre or back: People were super loyal to the German team and really cheered them on.
Have you learnt anything new?
The day was very fascinating for me in terms of high-tech. Seeing these boats: All the technology they have in the wings! There are even ventilation inlets with air pumps to cool the system. Everything in one of these wings looks like a racing car.
The F50 spoilers are very different from your Imocas.
Yes, we are not allowed to store energy, for example. That's why, in principle, we don't have this whole mechatronics area where you press a button and something goes off via presettings. I find that fascinating.
And there is also more control of the boats from outside.
The organiser can access the boats based on the data sent from on board and check whether they are behaving in accordance with the rules. For example, whether the windward rudder is not tilted too far to increase the righting moment. If this is the case, the organiser can penalise the team in the same way as for oversailing the course limits - and even take a boat out of the race. The organiser can also set limits to prevent their boats from falling apart. That's crazy, next level, totally cool.
What else impressed you?
What they have there! For example, two coaches can tell the crew live from outside the race: "You go through the front, through the back, five up, five down!" I heard the familiar voice of Jacopo Plazzi. He was on the GC32 team with Team Malizia in 2016. I heard him talking to the German team. I didn't know that existed. You don't realise that when you watch live on the internet.
Do you see any room for improvement?
As a guest, I was able to listen to the team communication on board the boats live via headphones. It's a bit like Formula 1 and I think that would be very interesting for all sailing fans. It helped me to understand what was happening. And it's exciting to hear the atmosphere on board, to hear Erik's voice or others. You feel like you're on board. You should actually stream it.
You also met many celebrities in Sassnitz who are not from the sailing scene. Who, for example?
Olympic boxing champion Henry Maske, for example. I spoke to him about Jochen Schümann. He spoke very favourably about him. He said that Jochen was then and now one of the greatest athletes and a role model for him.
How would you summarise SailGP overall?
It was definitely a great experience! Compared to our offshore world, the Grand Prix is positioned at the other end of the spectrum. It's good for organisers, athletes, sponsors and also for the media that you can rely on the race times. You can also invite your customers there. It's super valuable, new and cool - a good product in itself. I'm impressed, for example, that Rolex has signed a ten-year contract with the SailGP. That doesn't happen very often in sailing. In Sassnitz, they had the most beautiful lounge at the very end of the stadium with a panoramic view of the harbour and outside. That was really something!
