Ocean Race Europe: Four reasons in favour of "Malizia" - Clapcich takes over
Tatjana Pokorny
· 18.09.2025
Next Saturday, it will have been 1159 eventful and moving days from the launch on 19 July 2022 to Boris Herrmann's last race as skipper of his "Malizia - Seaexplorer". Then one of the most important chapters in the sailing career of the six-time circumnavigator will come to a close. He hands over the helm of the VPLP-Imoca, which he helped to develop, to Francesca Clapcich, who was born and raised in Italy and now lives with her family in the USA.
The new skipper and her team 11th Hour Racing are taking over the boat, which will continue to be co-managed by Team Malizia and will be based in Team Malizia's hangar in La Base harbour in Lorient. But then under its new name "11th Hour Racing". In a detailed interview, 37-year-old Italian-American Frankie Clapcich also explains why she opted for Boris Herrmann's boat on the course for her first Vendée Globe.
Francesca, the day of your takeover of "Malizia - Seaexplorer" is approaching with the final of the Ocean Race Europe on Saturday in Boka Bay. How did you experience your future boat in the European race?
First of all, it was great that the team was happy to take me on board and include me in the crew. I enjoy spending time with the team and also with the team of teammates. They have a good, natural manner. We all work very hard together. For me, the Ocean Race Europe has been a massive opportunity to get to know the boat really well. I also went to the boat every day in leg harbours to learn.
I spent a lot of time with the team, asking them what they were currently working on, why they were dealing with this or that topic. They showed me everything. How every detail works. Then you think, ah, you've understood another thing. The next day you meet the rigger and he shows you something else and you know something new again. It's a great way to learn directly from the guys.
Some of them built the boat. They know it inside out." Francesca Clapcich
You were already active on "Malizia - Seaexplorer" before the Ocean Race Europe...
I spent a lot of time on the boat with Will Harris. We sailed the Transat Café L'Or qualification together in the autumn: 1000 nautical miles double-handed. That was a good chance to work on board in peace and quiet because there were only two of us. He was also the one who said we should take turns every three hours so that each of us had solo time with the boat.
That way I could do solo manoeuvres and start thinking about how I wanted to do it. We were fast, making more than 1000 nautical miles in two days. At one point we reached average speeds of 28 knots. That's when I started thinking about whether we might be able to break the 24-hour record.
You are a professional sailor with an Olympic history. The winner of the Ocean Race Europe, Paul Meilhat, also used to sail in the Olympics, but didn't compete in the Games. Is an Olympic background also noticeable offshore?
Especially when it's tight (grins)! There is also no difference between people who have worked for the Olympics and those who have made it to the Olympics. There's no difference in work ethic. It's basically a very good school.
Are there differences between offshore teams with and without Olympic sailors?
I think there are differences. But it also depends on the people. There are many typical, pure offshore sailors who have extreme stamina, who are very pushy. It also has to do with your personality and how you approach your sport. I don't think Will has an Olympic background either. I've found him to be very focussed. He pushes himself all the time.
What did the Olympic School give you?
Maybe that you prioritise the human side? It sounds pretty crazy to me when I hear stories of skippers who do the Vendée Globe but have never done a physical test to find out how many calories they burn. Or never tested how fit they are. That sounds crazy to me.
Of course it's about the boat. But at some point it's also very much about people." Francesca Clapcich
How can you think so much about how you build your boat, but not about your mental and physical state? That's strange for me. I'm already working on it. I have a team of three people: One is a physiotherapist and nutritionist, one is a mental coach and one is a trainer. We want to work together in a holistic way: How can you be the best version of yourself?
The other things will happen anyway. The boat will break and you have to fix it. You have a lot of wind, strong swell. That's all the environment. But how can you really be on top of your game? For me, this area is very important. And I think that comes from my background in Olympic sailing.
Do you miss the Olympic "truth", where the same boats compete with each other and in the end it is easier to say that the best sailor won? In the Ocean Race Europe, it's harder to say whether "Malizia - Seaexplorer" came fifth on leg three because the crew made mistakes or because the boat didn't give more in the specific leg conditions...
I think it's a mix. We have definitely made mistakes. If you look at 'Biotherm', for example: They simply made fewer mistakes than everyone else. Holcim-PRB' has made some mistakes. Everyone makes mistakes. Even the winners. But it's about the number of mistakes. But of course, the fact that we don't have one-design boats makes it really hard to understand how much is riding on the boat.
For you too?
For us too. We look at the figures and see that on paper we are sailing well above the maximum performance of the boat, at 105 or 110 per cent of the maximum performance expectation, for example. So theoretically you know that you are better...
Why did you decide in favour of "Malizia - Seaexplorer" for your first Vendée Globe campaign?
There were several reasons, not just one strong point. First of all, I didn't want to build a new boat. We talked about it in my team and with the sponsors. We put all the different options on the table. A new build was of course an option, but I'm not an engineer, I don't have the background in boat design or a strong opinion on exactly how it should be built.
You're more of an athlete among the sea sailors...
... yes, I grew up in dinghies and have a degree in sports science. I'm not an engineer. I felt it would bring massive responsibility and massive stress for me to have to build a new boat without really having a complete idea of what I wanted and how I wanted it. So that option was quickly taken off the table.
The second point was that I wanted to sail as quickly as possible. It was very important for me to be able to start racing straight away. It was a big personal goal for me to compete in the Transat Café L'Or this year. There weren't that many boats available for the race.
The third point was to try to become part of a team that was already established." Francesca Clapcich
It's the first time for me. I want to do the Vendée Globe and I don't have much experience in solo sailing. I'm not already coming with a full tech crew, not with a whole team of my own. That's why it was important for me to find a good team that has a skipper who has sailed the Vendée Globe several times. A team that has a camp and a structure. And to be part of the team as a sailor.
Then of course there's the boat itself: If everything goes well and I qualify, it will be my first Vendée Globe. For me, the top priority is to finish the race. And I want to finish it with a good result. I'm not just doing it for the adventure. I'm not that kind of person. I have the feeling that it's an extremely reliable boat. It has shown exceptional performance in strong winds and waves. That's a high priority for me. You go into the Southern Ocean and for a third of the race or a bit more you have a boat that you can really push.
How did you come into contact with Team Malizia?
I started talking to Boris a bit during the Vendée Globe. While he was sailing. I asked, hey, what do you think about it? He found it exciting. He always shares a lot of his own experience. For me, Boris and the whole team are very open, very international. That's important to me. I'm not French, I don't live in France and my family doesn't live in France either.
Honestly, I didn't want to turn my life completely upside down. I know it would be really hard for my family. I wanted a team that was international and understood that the skipper wasn't a French skipper. I wanted to find a balance in life. I didn't want to have to push my family to follow me and live in France. And build a life that they don't want. It's very important for me to spend time with my family.
By now you've got to know Boris a little better. You were on the boat together on stages three, four and five of the Ocean Race Europe...
I still don't know him that well. But every time I meet him, I learn a bit more about what he's like. I think he knows the boat so much better than anyone else! Even though I've spent a lot more time with Will over the past few months, who has a very analytical approach to the boat. It's completely different with Boris. There's a lot more emotion involved. I try to soak it all up and listen.
If you put the two approaches together, you might come up with the miracle pill" Francesca Clapcich
Of course, you need an analytical approach. Because if you do something stupid, the mast flies down. But then you also need the emotional approach that gives you that special power. And I think Boris created that in the same way: to have that special power with a bit of extravagance. It was so good to have him there.
Can you describe this power?
He knows the boat so well, he understands it. Every time something is wrong or the wrong sail is set, he just senses it. He sleeps in his bunk, wakes up and says: 'I don't know if we should sail with the J3 now? Then I ask: 'You were asleep. How do you know?' He just senses things like that because he's spent three months of his life alone on the boat, listening to every single sound and every single movement of the boat."
Boris is not French. He has asserted himself in an environment that is extremely French. At a time when he was the only one in this environment that was not his environment. He built himself up in it. For me, he has something that many of the other French heroes don't have. That's very special. Sometimes he might be a bit crazy. But I love that too.
It's similar on the boat. Sometimes I can feel that four people on board are too many for Boris. But he has often managed this 'freakin' boat' on his own for long periods of time. Without any problems. You can then take a step back and give him the space. I don't think you sail around the world alone if you don't enjoy spending time with yourself.
Will you enjoy sailing solo?
Yes, I like to keep to myself sometimes. Three months is a lot, of course. A lot to be away from the family. I know I'm going to miss them a lot. I miss them already. I won't see them for a month and a half. That's half a Vendée Globe.
Where are you at home?
At the moment, I feel at home in the USA. We bought a house there. Our daughter was born there. We live in Park City in Utah. We are at an altitude of almost 2000 metres in the mountains. There is no sea there. We only have lakes and a few rivers. We could sail, but we never do. We do everything else, go to the mountains, cycling, skiing. I used to ski race as a child. It was my dream as a little girl to become a ski racer.
How did you become a sailor?
I grew up in Trieste. The sailing club was ten minutes round the corner. Everyone sails there. It was a bit of a natural progression. My dad had a lot of passion for it. Not necessarily for sailing, but for the boats. Then he got ill and I started spending a lot of time with other kids and my friends at the club. When he died, I found my way there.
I was still very young, only 13 years old. I just wanted to go to the club and go sailing. Nobody there looks at you with pity. I found my way to deal with my life. It also made me the person I am. Sailing is a good school for life.
It has led you into the supreme disciplines of sailing. You are considered one of the most versatile and successful professional sailors: After competing in two Olympic Games, winning the last Ocean Race around the world with 11th Hour Racing and competing in the Women's America's Cup, you could be the first person to climb the "four-peak of sailing" with the Vendée Globe...
(Laughs). I didn't make that up. Others have seen that. I've always done things in my life because of the challenge. In my childhood, I never had dreams of the Vendée Globe. My dream as a six-year-old was to win the Olympic Games. I was a little kid, sitting at dinner with my parents and the Olympics were on TV. It was all so special to me!
You watch athletics and see how they run, how they move. You see gymnasts and how they move. That is physical perfection. You see swimmers gliding through the water like fish. I was still small, but I knew: that's it! That's what I want to do one day. So I told my parents that one day I would be at the Olympic Games. And they were like: 'Sure, of course...' But my father then added: 'You can do it, but you have to work very hard for it. I took that on board and thought, 'Okay, I can do it. That was my lifelong dream.
Then I saw everything else as a way to stay in touch with the sport. Building a career, finding new challenges, learning new things - I'm very curious. I like discovering cities. And I'm also curious about the little things in life. I am interested: What can I learn today? What can I learn tomorrow? What did I learn yesterday that I can use today?
The Vendée Globe fits perfectly as a challenge...
Yes, I love this kind of challenge! I love pushing myself. And I like the way the challenge pushes me. But the Vendée Globe is not my dream.
I could live without doing the Vendée Globe. But I still want to do it. It's a different approach." Francesca Clapcich
What's next for you and - very soon - your boat after the final in Boka Bay?
I'm going to fly home. I'll be in New York for 24 hours on the way. We have a cool event there with the 'Protect our Winters' initiative and 11th Hour Racing, who are jointly building the 'Water Alliance' network with a focus on the sea. I'm really looking forward to that. Then I'll be home in Utah for a fortnight.
And in the meantime, "Malizia - Seaexplorer" in Lorient turns into "11th Hour Racing"?
Exactly. Part of me would like to return to France sooner, but that's part of the balance I was talking about. The boat will be in Lorient for a maximum of ten days after its return. It will be rebranded very quickly. The Malizia sponsors are going down, 11th Hour Racing on it. The colours stay. There's no time for anything else yet. The boat will still look very similar, but will be called "11th Hour Racing". We have to be in Le Havre on 16 October, where the Transat Café L'Or starts on 26 October.
BEFORE the final coastal race in the Ocean Race Europe takes place on Saturday. Boris Herrmann, Francesca Clapcich and Team Malizia will be in a duel with Ambrogio Beccaria's Team Allagrande Mapei for fourth place. NDR will be broadcasting live from Montenegro here from 12 noon. The race starts at 2pm. Overview of the points after five stages shows why two duels in particular will provide suspense, while the overall winners from Team Biotherm have already been decided.
