The Ocean Race: After the mountain festival is before the final - the Atlantic duel
Tatjana Pokorny
· 28.03.2023
The two leading boats in the Ocean Race have just under 1,600 nautical miles to go before the finish line of the queen's stage. Boris Herrmann and his team Malizia are in the lead. Kevin Escoffier's Team Holcim - PRB chases the German boat. The overall leaders have already won two stages and the halfway point of the queen stage under the Swiss flag. They would be only too happy to take the full points for the double stage in Itajaí. Can Boris Herrmann and his team prevent this and continue to defend their lead?
We're going to have to play our best game." (Will Harris)
"It will be a fight to the finish," predicts Maliizia's co-skipper Will Harris. The Brit knows shortly after his Cape Horn premiere: "Team Holcim is only a few nautical miles behind us. They are doing an incredibly good job of putting us under pressure. I wish they would take a bit of team butt out (laughs). We will have to play our best game." Harris went on to talk about the night after Cape Horn: "We had the toughest battle yet. I saw over 50 knots of wind on the display. That was probably more than we experienced in the days before Cape Horn."
The gusts were "brutal and sometimes dangerous", says Harris. "The boat totally flies when conditions like that prevail. And then shoots the bow into the waves. That makes it extremely challenging out here. This morning the conditions calmed down a bit. I think I've probably only slept three hours in the last 48 hours since Rosie had her accident." The team has been missing one of four players at this stage of the Ocean Race since then because the Dutchwoman has had to rest most of the time due to the concussion she suffered.
The Atlantic has us in its grip, won't let go." (Will Harris)
"I have a lot of solo watches behind me. I swap with Boris, while Nico is fluent in his navigation role. Life is really tough at the moment. The Atlantic has us in its grip and won't let up. But I'm also enjoying the fight and sailing against the others. Keep your fingers crossed that we make it to the finish like this."
What is Team Malizia's lead in the Southern Ocean worth in the final sprint?
While the other two teams, 11th Hour Racing and Biotherm, are trailing with more than 370 and 400 nautical miles respectively, the top duel is raging towards its climax. Team Holcim - PRB passed Cape Horn on 27 March at 19:40 German time, 1 hour and 17 minutes after Team Malizia. The almost .nautical miles remaining to Itajaí on the afternoon of 28 March will show what the lead that Team Malizia has built up with great pride in the Southern Ocean after the horrendous mast repair and the successful comeback is worth.
In the back of an active storm depression south of the Falkland Islands, the race initially progressed rapidly on the day after the mountain festival. However, the final nautical miles of the historically longest Ocean Race leg will be very challenging for the navigators in winds that are difficult to predict at times, as there are also calm areas lurking on the remaining course to Itajaí. Not even the experts dare to make precise forecasts at the moment. The first boats are expected to arrive in Itajaí on 2 April.
After his sixth Cape Horn passage, Boris Herrmann paid a personal and detailed tribute to the legendary landmark on the evening of the successful summit storm. Here is the 41-year-old skipper's dedication:
"A brief moment in the grey south, but a big step for Team Malizia! It goes by so quickly ... We almost feel like we've been torn out of the cocoon world we've settled into over the last few weeks! The moment when we cheered arm in arm into the camera with that iconic rock behind us brought out a range of emotions in me and all of us. The Hoorn looked beautiful today and after a few minutes disappeared back into the grey fog! We are back in our cocoon, but on a new level. We are in the Atlantic and see the water temperature rise from 6.5 to 7.2 degrees. We are almost heading for Itajaí at very high speed, it is very choppy, which limits the possibilities for typing. In two hours we will enter the Le Marie Passage.
The reward you can get for hard work, faith and not giving up." (Boris Herrmann)
After sitting here a few weeks ago thinking about giving up, this is an example of the reward you can get for hard work, faith and not giving up. We are here, thanks in part to all of you. And I hope you will enjoy the content that will go online in the coming hours and tomorrow. Let's celebrate this moment together. This winter, our flag will be the first to fly around the Cape... The Malizia flag! Standing for many nations!"
The Cape Horn rounding of "Malizia" in the video:
More about The Ocean Race:
Tatjana Pokorny
Sports reporter
