For the 13th time: Dutch sailors sign up for The Ocean Race: Carolijn Brouwer returns to her roots

It's hard to imagine The Ocean Race without "Flying Dutchmen" in the race. For the 13th time, a team flying the Dutch flag will take part in the world's most famous team race at the 14th edition. The team will soon be called "NextGen" - at least for the time being. The abbreviation stands for "Next Generation" and is intended to emphasise the young sailors in the team. Many of them are not yet well known in the international offshore world, but have spent the past three years training intensively for their endeavours. For example, Jelmer van Beek, who has also become known as a match racer, Laura van Veen, Jorden van Rooijen and Rutger Vos. The team is managed and orchestrated by Sailing Holland and DutchSail. The sailing clubs behind the campaign are KNZ & RV and KRZV De Maas. Five partners and a "business club" with many medium-sized companies are supporting the project so far, but the door is open to others. In addition, Sailing Team NextGen can look forward to the support of Holland's most famous female circumnavigator as it prepares for the race around the world from 15 January 2023.

Carolijn Brouwer has already taken part in The Ocean Race three times, but has now signed up for a Dutch team for the first time. She says: "Historically, we Dutch are the strongest country in The Ocean Race. 'ABN Amro I' was the last boat to win the race under the Dutch flag, but there was no Dutchman on board. I was on the winning boat in the last race, but that wasn't with a Dutch team." The native Dutchwoman, who lives in Australia with her husband Darren Bundock and their son Kyle Nico, reminds us that she has never sailed around the world for a Dutch team: "This campaign will hopefully change that. Not for me, but for the next generations. I really believe that we can inspire a lot of young kids at home and in the local sailing clubs. I would love to pass on my experience and knowledge to the next generation of young sailors. They need to be able to see that dreams are achievable." Exactly what role(s) the figurehead of the best international female round the world sailors and first female winner of The Ocean Race will take on with the Dutch was initially left open.

27-year-old Jelmer van Beek, who is one of twelve sailors under the age of 30 who have completed thousands of nautical miles on the VO65 boat in recent years, said: "As sailors, we are naturally thrilled with the news that the boat has been registered and that we will be taking part in the race. We are now looking forward to sailing with Carolijn in the near future. We have already spoken to her a lot on the phone. Due to the situation in the world, we have not been able to sail together in recent years, but that will change very soon. Sailing is all about experience. Water hours are important, good preparation is essential. We are on course. Thanks to the support of the Janssen de Jong Group, among many others, we - the next generation - have already travelled many miles in recent years. Jorden van Rooijen, Laura van Veen, Rutger Vos and I, for example, have already crossed the Atlantic several times on this boat. Now it's up to us to secure a place on board in the coming months."

The team director of the NextGen sailors is Gideon Messink from Sailing Holland, who knows all the tricks of the trade. Messink, together with Anita van Oeveren, was also responsible for Team Brunel in the last two editions of the race. Anita van Oeveren made it clear that the campaign is on a good footing, but that there is still room for improvement in the partner area: "At the moment, we certainly still have room for companies in the team. Depending on budget and interest, support can be provided in various areas. We still need additional support if we want to form a winning campaign."

The Ocean Race starts on 15 January 2023 in Alicante and ends six months and 32,000 nautical miles later in the Italian port of Genoa. The stopovers include Cape Verde, Cape Town, Itajaí in Brazil, Newport in the USA, Aarhus and The Hague. A so-called fly-by brings the state and sailing capital of Schleswig-Holstein, Kiel, into play. In addition to the already familiar VO65 yachts, the Imocas known from the Vendée Globe are also being challenged for the first time with smaller crews. At least Boris Herrmann will be at the start with his new build and Team Malizia. Offshore Team Germany also wants to be there.