Phil Lawrence is the regatta director of the Ocean Race. This gives the 68-year-old one of the most responsible positions in the international sailing world. The extremely experienced regatta manager left his home in Lymington the day after Christmas 2022. Since then, he has only been home for one day. The 14th The Ocean Race is keeping the British tea lover on his toes. Once a successful regatta sailor himself and competing alongside star boat helmsman and Ben Ainslie's successful coach David Howlett at the 1992 Olympic Games, he switched to the organisational side as Race Director for the Extreme Sailing Series in 2010. This is his second consecutive year as Race Director for the Ocean Race.
Phil, you have one of the most responsible and toughest jobs in the international sailing world. How did you come to the role of Race Director for The Ocean Race?
I sailed at a very high level for many years. I competed in the star boat at the 1992 Olympic Games. I also sailed many ocean races as a navigator. I have sailed at a high level all my life. Then in 2010 I was approached to become Race Officer for the Extreme Sailing Series. What they were looking for was an experienced sailor who could manage the races but also liaise with the sailors.
As this was a new, pioneering event, it was not a conventional regatta. Many races over four days, not perfect courses because they were adapted to maximise the spectators' view. There was a change of heart back then. So I was the race officer, and there was also a lot of safety work to be done.
You did that for about six years ...
I organised 50 events around the world for the Extreme Sailing Series. Then Mark Turner, the managing director of OC Sports, became head of the Volvo Ocean Race. He rang me and asked if I would like to be Race Director for the Ocean Race. That's what I did.
I managed the 2017/2018 race. It was a pretty big event around the world with ten stops over nine months - a huge event. Then the company changed hands and is now owned by Richard Brisius and Johan Salen and Atlant Ocean Racing. They asked me to take over the race management for this race. So this is my second circumnavigation. I also managed the Ocean Race Europe.
I've only seen my home for one day since I left the day after Christmas."
Have you got your dream job?
I love my job. It's fantastic. But it also comes with tough times and can be very gruelling. I've only seen my home in Lymington for one day since I left the day after Christmas. There have been a lot of late nights. On the other hand, it can be satisfying to greet incoming crews at the dock at sunrise in the freezing cold. The job comes with a lot of responsibility. The safety aspects are enormous. It is professional sport at the highest level. The standard is very high. With World Sailing Race Officer Bill O'Hara, Chief Marshal Tom Ehler, Technical Director Neil Cox and other members, we have a very experienced and great team that works hard to organise this race for the sailors at the highest level.
Has your mobile phone ever been switched off since the start of the Ocean Race?
Never. This is something I can hardly wait for. It rings very loudly. WhatsApp is also set to very loud. When the boats sailed around Antarctica in stage three, I was in the office in Alicante every day. Of course, there are always incidents: technical problems, material breakages, injuries. In the Southern Ocean we had a lot of problems with the ice, which was floating unusually far north in the Pacific. We had ice meetings every day for a week, observed and analysed the satellite images. Because of course the crews want to sail as far south as possible. On the other hand, we have to keep them away from the ice. There's something going on in the race organisation every day.
The finish time for the turning mark in Kiel is 4 pm, with the Imocas sailing in the main fairway and the spectator boats having to stay outside."
How is the course planned for the fly-by in Kiel on 9 June?
For Kiel, it is planned that the main fairway of the Kiel Fjord will be closed to shipping for two hours. That doesn't happen very often. The entrance to the main fairway will also be closed for two hours from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. on 9 June. The first challenge for us is to ensure that the fleet arrives at the entrance to the fjord at the right time. We have therefore developed a course that will take them there. Possibly, and depending on the wind conditions, we will add an additional loop to hit the right time to enter the fjord, which is by the lighthouse.
The timing is challenging ...
Yes, very much so, because you can't always get it one hundred per cent right in sailing. Of course, we would like to see our fleet sail into the fjord at 15.01 hrs. That could work out, but you never know for sure. Then we have the two-hour window to get them in and out again. Our fleet will sail all the way in to the turning mark off the shore. The target time for the turning mark is around 4 p.m., with the Imocas sailing in the main fairway and the spectators having to stay to the side. That is the plan. The only safety is (smiles) that it will probably not be exactly 4 pm. The boats will be escorted and there will be marshals. The police will probably be on duty with ten boats, and I think there will be 25 boats on the water as marshals. We also have a few boats ourselves. All this to help the spectators. Our message is: stay out of the main fairway! You will see some great sights, but stay away.
Because otherwise dangerous situations could arise?
Safety plays a key role here. We want it to be a safe event. We have great support from the authorities in Kiel. The biggest risk is collisions in the spectator fleet. We can protect the Imocas. There are five of them coming in. It's one of the most challenging events we've ever done. We organised a fly-by in Aarhus at the last edition. That was extremely successful. After that, Aarhus was added to the programme as a full stage stop for this edition. So we hope that the fly-by in Kiel will be the start of something similar.
Our crews are in the race and can't wait for the perfect weather window. And they still broke the record."
What does a regatta director have to bring to the table to make a race like the Ocean Race a success?
You have a lot of responsibility. So you have to be able to stay calm under pressure. That is certainly a key. I'm very happy that we haven't had any major tragedies in this race so far. There is no doubt that it can be a dangerous sport. We do everything we can to minimise these dangers. We train the sailors properly and watch over them as race organisers.
Are the Ocean Race skippers and their crews sailors who are easy to work with?
They are a really good group of people, but also very ambitious. They are fair sports people, but they also want to win. They expect professional top management from us, which we provide. We talk to them but don't tend to consult them on everything. We make our decisions, and if they are ever dissatisfied, they can always turn to the jury.
Did the Imocas prove their worth as an ocean race class at their premiere? Have they come to stay?
I think these boats are fantastic. They are so exciting, so fast. We knew that if they got good conditions, they would break the 24-hour record. They did it in a spectacularly good way! I mean: This record had previously been set by a hundred-foot boat. That was "Comanche". Their record stood for eight years! Back then, they were looking for the perfect weather window and went out with a crew of experts just for the record. Our crews are in the race and can't wait for a perfect weather window. And they broke the record anyway. And how! We had pondered in the office whether they would break the record and what it would look like. My guess was 638 nautical miles. I was close (editor's note: Boris Herrmann's "Malizia - Seaexplorer" achieved the new record with 641.13 nautical miles).
Here are the highlights from the harbour race in Aarhus, which was won on Sunday by the long-suffering Team Biotherm ahead of "Holcim-PRB" and the US team 11th Hour Racing. Team Malizia sailed to fourth place, defending second place in the harbour race rankings behind 11th Hour Racing:
Tatjana Pokorny
Sports reporter
