Tell me, Boris, have the Imocas proved their worth in the Ocean Race?
They did. Unfortunately, the VO65 class is out and will no longer be part of the Ocean Race Europe. That was a surprise here and also caused some displeasure. Which I can well understand. But the Imocas have proved their worth. There were almost no negative surprises. And they were also significantly faster than the 65s.
After all, there were two mast breaks ...
There have also been mast breaks in the 65s in the past. In this race, there weren't any major design faults to be seen. It was individual components that failed. This can be explained and can sometimes result in a mast breaking, but these Imoca masts are very solid.
So should we stick to one boat class for the future - the Imocas?
Yes, absolutely. It was a big mistake right from the start - with all due respect to the management, who made many great decisions - to keep the 65 alive. Understandable, but not a good decision. It simply split the fleet and diluted the momentum. Many 65er campaigns have struggled to raise money. Two or three additional Imoca campaigns would certainly have been created if they hadn't tried that, which didn't work out in the end.
Do you have an example where an Imoca extension would have been possible?
Some of the teams have put together really good campaigns. For example, Team Poland with the WindWhisper Racing Team. They won all the stages. They were strong and had two ships. Of course, they could also have put together a strong Imoca campaign. And they would have done it too if it had been clear from the start. That's why we were really annoyed that the 65s were also launched. It was foreseeable that this was not a good idea.
Can the points system stay?
This is basically good and better than adding up the times sailed, because you can win the race with points even if you have damage on a leg. That makes this race wonderfully complementary to the Vendée Globe. The Vendée Globe is also so brutal because you simply can't make a mistake. If you're out, you're out. Of course, it's unbelievable to go to such great lengths for this. That's a big problem they have with the Vendée Globe. Whereas with the Ocean Race, we have a race where it's exactly the opposite: if we have a big problem here, you can come back through logistics, with strong partners and the financial background. You can manage to keep competing.
Can the points system be optimised?
Yes, by distributing the points a little more according to the difficulty and length of the stages. We would have liked a scoring gate for Cape Horn because it is a very symbolic place for the race, a big turning point. And from there to the north was another stage in its own right.
So a triple classification for the queen stage. Is the double classification for the Transat section from Newport to Aarhus okay?
Yes, you can do that. That's what the organisers have decided. That's how you want to create iconic stages, a kind of "signature legs". But of course, the race was already a bit of a game after that, disproportionately pre-decided. We didn't like that even before the stage. There could have been a scoring gate in the middle of the stage to reward the performance in between. What will make a big difference is if we have ten boats next time. Then there will be more options and more play. For example, the last leg could be scored twice. Then you keep the tension until the end. It would be like the medal races at the Olympic Games. Teams could win or lose everything at the end. But I'm not saying that I would do it that way.
Was the team size with crews of four a good choice?
If I were the organiser - and I always know everything better (laughs): I would leave it up to the teams to choose a crew strength of between three and five male or female sailors. You could also discuss a 50 per cent women's rule again, but that would be difficult with five people. Basically, it was a great decision by the organisers to reduce from the originally planned five to four. Four is simply a great number. If you were to reduce it to three or five, then maybe some of the French, the hardcore Imoca people who have only built their boats for the Vendée Globe, where there is actually no room in the cockpit, would be a bit more tempted to come out from behind the stove if they were only allowed to sail with three people. For long legs, it can be an advantage to be lighter. On the other hand, a young crew with more people would have more opportunities and room for manoeuvre to bring in new people. That would be my suggestion. But four is simply the ideal number.
Would you like to sail another Ocean Race in the future?
Yes, we want to be here again. We want to do the Ocean Race again. It was a great experience for us as a team. We also hope that our partners see it that way. We can't announce an official campaign just yet, but I would draw a cautious interim conclusion that we are definitely very, very likely to be highly motivated to get back on the starting line. The virus has now got into my blood. I won't be getting rid of it any time soon.
Kiel presented itself really well at the fly-by. What role do you think the Sailing City will play in the future?
I think that Germany presented itself really well at this 14th The Ocean Race. Kiel too, of course. Big respect to the organisers! Starting with the Lord Mayor, who also personally supports sailing, but also to all the other people in Kiel who are organising this with their experience from other major sailing events such as Kiel Week. Kiel is predestined for something like this. It was really great. Overall, Germany was a strong factor in this race. Many fans are German. A lot of them were on the Malizia tracker. We had very strong and great support from Germany. So many people came to Aarhus or The Hague. It is always said that Germany is not really a sailing nation. But that hasn't always been true. You could already see that when the "Illbruck" won in 2002. You can see it at Kieler Woche, boot in Düsseldorf, the Hanse Group as the largest shipyard and all the other events and commitments where Germany - measured by certain metrics - is very present. With YACHT, we have the largest sailing magazine in Europe. And from our point of view, it has to be said that the German media gave the Ocean Race a great reception - certainly more than in France. I think it would be great if we could start in Hamburg and finish in Kiel next time.
Has the current and rather purist Ocean Race route with the historically longest stage along the three capes proved its worth?
Yes, I believe that the route is an essential success factor. Maintaining the old route with eleven ports of call and a campaign duration of eight or nine months, including ports in China and other ports, would be difficult to realise these days in my view. I would strongly recommend that the organisers stick to this route: the classic route, the three capes, the south. For us as a team, it is perhaps not so relevant whether we stop again in Australia or New Zealand. Or whether it's Salvador, Rio or Itajaí, even if we really liked Itajaí. But the route is absolutely perfect. And it has to stay that way. I would see a difficult Ocean Race if there was a fundamental change.
Let's move on to the sailing wardrobe: did the regulations fit or is there a need for change?
No, that has proved very successful. It was a good and informed decision. Of course, Team Guyot was really unlucky to receive a penalty point at the end due to the high additional requirement as a result of the mast breakage. But that doesn't change their overall placing. All in all, it was good that the madness of big waste was put a stop to with a limited sail wardrobe.
Your boat "Malizia - Seaexplorer" has often been described as a strong-wind rocket with weaknesses in light winds. On the other hand, it is only about a year old now. How do you see it after the race around the world?
I think our ship is good. We still haven't quite understood how we can do everything perfectly. It takes quite a while to learn with a new boat like this. But I'm satisfied from the ground up. The boat is also good in light winds. It's no heavier than the others. A lot of nonsense was spread.
Could this also be due to the beefy look?
That may be the case. You can discuss it, of course. But for us, there are precise reasons why we did it this way or that.
So you think your boat is well positioned in relation to the other Vendée Globe boats?
I see us as being very well positioned. To be honest, I personally wouldn't even consider competing in the Vendée Globe with any of the other boats.
Were you satisfied with your team overall?
Very much! We worked well together, we harmonised well. We didn't make many mistakes. I'm so proud of my team. The Cape Horn stage will certainly remain unforgettable. It took us a while to realise what we had achieved there. I had long dreamed of taking part in the Ocean Race, completing this incredible leg through the Southern Ocean, not only finishing it after all the difficulties we had at the start, but also winning it! If someone had said to me beforehand: fix your mast at sea and then you'll win, I wouldn't have believed it. I would have called it impossible. But then it worked out much better than expected.
Is there anything you didn't like at all about this Ocean Race?
No, I don't know anything about that.
There was a big bang at the finale due to the crash caused by Team Guyot with 11th Hour Racing. The winners and the final classification will have to be decided at the green table. To what extent did this accident affect the race?
The crash took the music out of the race in the end. Otherwise, we could have at least theoretically still played for second place. And Holcim - PRB for first place. So 11th Hour Racing has to win it. The jury's decision can only be a compensation in the form of the average of the previously achieved placings.
Was the last stage still fun in the shadow of these considerations?
It was a very slow stage. We were in good fashion and in a good mood with the team. It was a lot of fun being at sea. Luckily we didn't have a lot of pressure on our shoulders. We knew that no matter what came out of the jury hearing, we would come third. We also didn't feel like we were affected by all of the jury's hassle. I don't understand at all why the jury wants to question us about it. I have nothing to say about it. For us, it was simply a clear case of port to starboard. I think this whole hearing with all the teams is a bit of an alibi so that they don't have to announce a winner and take all the tension out of the race before we even arrive in Genoa.
If you could rave about the Ocean Race that has just ended ...
... then I would say that everyone involved in this race grew together enormously. All the solidarity with Guyot Team Europe, the other Germans who were there, Robert and his people - the race was much more than just a sporting event. It's like one big family.
