Germany's offshore youngsters are stepping on the gas: With Class 40, Mini and Figaro to the top

One remains - for the time being - loyal to the class in which he became a shooting star at his Mini-Transat première in stormy extreme conditions. The other is about to switch to the Class 40 and is already very close to this goal. The third, highly decorated with an Olympic 49erFX silver medal, has now started her offshore training and set her sights on promotion in the Figaro class and has already completed her first month of training before Lorient. Melwin Fink, Lennart Burke and Susann Beucke have ambitious plans, which they are pursuing on very different courses and with different previous experience. One tempting long-term goal: the Vendée Globe 2028.

"Boris Herrmann has paved a really good way for us. We have to use it for the whole of German sailing and for ourselves," says Lennart Burke, "as professional sailors, we are jointly responsible for doing something for the sailing industry and the good reputation of German sailing. I see it as our duty to make sailing attractive. Boris has achieved and presented a great deal in this respect. We have to follow suit."

The 23-year-old from Stralsund, who sailed strongly in his Mini Transat premiere in 2021 but also had to overcome setbacks, is about to ignite the next stage of his ascent. He has his sights set on switching from the Mini to the Class 40. "That's my goal. But anyone who knows me knows that I only announce something when it's really ready to happen," says the determined young man, who is well on the way to being able to make a living from his sport. He already has commitments for this season, including as training co-skipper on board an older Class 40, whose skipper wants to prepare for a transatlantic crossing with Burke's expertise.

Lennart Burke is currently where he spent two years preparing for the mini-transat: in the Breton offshore sailing cradle of Lorient. He came here at the invitation of Susann Beucke, who has heralded her transition from competitive Olympic sport to sailing with a Figaro at her disposal. She has already completed a month of training with France's Figaro experts. The 30-year-old has invited a variety of partners with different qualities in order to broaden her horizons as quickly as possible. One of these sailing partners is Lennart Burke, who was "finally back" at Susann Beucke's side in Lorient this week. "Sanni called me and asked if I would like to train with her. I was going through withdrawal from sailing and was very happy about this opportunity. Sailing is addictive," says Burke. The mini-sailor was impressed by the first Figaro training days of his career. "Sanni and I can benefit a lot from each other: She brings trimmer experience, I bring the offshore experience." Burke has been in Lorient since early 28 February. The first 24-hour training regatta with almost ten boats showed him just how high the standard in the Figaro class is. "There are some very strong people involved," says Burke. Although sailing the Figaros is "not rocket science", the sail settings are "very detailed": "I can sail a Mini with an eye patch, I know all the sheets, but I had to familiarise myself with the Figaro first." Burke was particularly impressed by the extended navigational options, which are not available in the purist Mini class. "It's amazing to be able to navigate on the screen with Adrena. I'm already looking forward to being able to do that in the future."

The fact that the two Bs - Beucke and Burke - had to abandon their first 24-hour training race together with the entire training group in the early hours of the morning was not due to problems on board. "A freighter must have lost a load of wood," says Burke, "It felt like a thick plank was floating in the water every 50 metres. We collided with wood three times. The others felt the same way. One of them then said that we should sail home because otherwise we would damage the boats. That was really tough, but we'll be going out again tomorrow."

When Lennart Burke travels back to his new adopted home of Hamburg on Saturday, he will be taking a large portion of Lorient passion with him. And the determination to drive his own programme forward quickly and with focus. In between, Burke was a guest at a Trans-Ocean Zoom meeting on Wednesday evening, where his Mini colleagues Lina Rixgens and Melwin Fink also talked about their experiences in the Mini-Transat 2021 and answered questions from the almost 200 participants. Melwin Fink also talked about his plans for the future. He will continue with a Vector 6.5, which he is currently fitting out with boat builder Markus "Porky" Mehlen. "I'm planning to sail a second mini regatta," said law student Fink, who is currently fitting out his new series mini in a hall in Bad Salzuflen, Germany, until the end of March. In an interview with YACHT online, Fink said: "I deliberately ordered the boat completely naked, so there's a lot to do." Once the outfitting of the boat is complete, it will travel to Barcelona in April for a test transfer to Mallorca and to take part in the second leg of the Mini Med, which leads from Mallorca back to Barcelona.