"Born to race: Inside the making of Team Malizia's next Imoca." This is the title of a new seven-part documentary series that looks at the new Imoca from Team Malizia. A first short trailer for the in-house production is already available. In it, Boris Herrmann also talks about the fact that "we really want to win", "that we are building a new boat and are looking for every half kilo that we can lighten the boat by", "that we are pushing everyone". The long-term goal for the new Imoca is the Vendée Globe 2028/2029.
Vendée Globe: Are all good things come in threes?
The trailer also briefly discusses the origins of the new build project. The essence: "In 2023, Boris Herrmann and the team started thinking about building a new boat. A boat that is made to win." The series kicks off on Wednesday, 28 January. The seventh and final part will be shown at the end of July, about a month after the launch.
"I have a dream. I'm realising the dream. That's the coolest thing!" Boris Herrmann
After an exciting fifth place at his Imoca premiere in 2020/2021 and the somewhat less favoured twelfth place in the second solo round around the world 2024/2025 Boris Herrmann, now 44 years old, and Team Malizia are now making their third attempt at the Vendée Globe. The aim is to take part in the eleventh edition of the most famous non-stop solo race around the world. While Herrmann travelled with a second-hand boat the first time round, the team had built an Imoca of their own design for the second round, the "Malizia - Seaexplorer".
For the third time, Team Malizia and its skipper Boris Herrmann now have one of three sister ships under construction at CDK Technologies in Lorient. in a design alliance with two other teams is being built. The Thomas Ruyant Racing team is continuing construction without the sponsor who has left the team and is still hoping to find new partners for the promising project and the first of the three new Imocas on schedule.
The third team in the alliance is the Banque Populaire racing team with skipper Loïs Berrehar, whose boat is due to be completed by early 2027. Yacht designer and sailor Antoine Koch, the company Finot-Conq and Gsea Design are responsible for the design of the Imoca triplets. "We are convinced that we will be stronger with three boats," said Boris Herrman when the ambitious project was first presented in May 2025.
Answers to the questions about the new building for the Vendée Globe
Boris Herrmann's new boat is due to be finished by the end of June this summer. On the way there, the new documentary series follows the creation of the Imoca, with which Germany's best-known circumnavigator wants to attack the Vendée Globe again in two and a half years' time. Team Malizia kicks off the series with the question: "What does it really take to build a successful Imoca?"
Whether big and bold ideas or small but fine details: Team Malizia wants to take an intensive look behind the scenes of the new construction project with the new documentary. Filming for the series has been underway since the start of construction. According to Team Malizia, the documentary follows "the human, technical and strategic journey to create a high-performance racing yacht".
According to Team Malizia, topics include the hull shape, the sail design, the ergonomics that determine every movement on board and the various levels of electronics. Boris Herrmann's team and the external experts are exploring the possibilities. The promise that accompanies the announcement of the new documentary series: "Instead of simply providing updates on the construction, 'Born to Race' sheds light on the questions that drive the project." The centrepiece is Boris Herrmann, who, after his Antarctic mission at the end of 2025 was already working intensively in Lorient in January.
One million euros in prize money for the 11th Vendée Globe
The new series explores thoughts like these: How does a vision become reality, how does experience drive innovation and how do the lessons learnt from past campaigns shape the future? The individual series episodes are scheduled to be broadcast on the last Wednesday of every month from 28 January (probably from 6 pm). According to Team Malizia, they are intended to "capture the intensity, creativity and collaboration behind a construction project that extends over a longer period of time and leads to the launch of Team Malizia's future Imoca in early summer 2026."
The 11th Vendée Globe, which starts on 12 November 2028 at 13:02 in Les Sables-d'Olonne, is in everyone's sights. Up to 40 skippers will be admitted. The organisers reserve three wild cards. Here you can find the essence of the rules. The prize money has been increased from 820,000 euros in 2024 to one million euros for the next edition. Victory alone will be worth 250,000 euros next time.
