He was born just 21 days before Boris Herrmann - on 7 May. Both were born in 1981, but are fundamentally different. Unlike the early long-distance sailor Herrmann, Stanjek was active in Olympic classes for more than a decade and a half, finishing sixth at the 2012 Olympics and as Star Boat World Champion in 2014.
The Berlin native acquired the necessary skills as a child in the Ransdorf sailing club and as a national sailor. After missing out on the Olympic star boat, he switched to big boats, pushed ahead with his professional career and caught fire for sailing. He founded Offshore Team Germany (OTG) with Berlin music producer Jens Kuphal in 2016. Their long journey together was rewarded with victory in the Ocean Race Europe in 2021.
Now Stanjek and Kuphal have joined forces with Imoca skipper Benjamin Dutreux to form Guyot Environnement - Team Europe. As co-skipper with Dutreux, Stanjek will share responsibility for his Ocean Race premiere. We spoke to him during the return passage from the Route du Rhum in December.
YACHT: Robert, where does your team stand just before the start?
Stanjek: The preparation was a bit of a compromise between The Ocean Race team competition and Ben's solo campaign, who has just sailed the Route du Rhum with the boat and has his sights set on the Vendée Globe in 2024. We had to take a step back as a team. We still completed a few training blocks and took part in a regatta.
Your boat is the "Hugo Boss", with which Alex Thomson came second in the 2016/2017 Vendée Globe. Can she stand up to the new builds?
We have completely overhauled the boat. It is older than the others, but well tested, has already sailed around the world and completed several transatlantic races as part of a team. So it has already been pushed harder than in solo races. This basic solidity is on the plus side.
What are the boat's strengths and weaknesses?
It's a bit heavier than the new builds. That also describes our shortcoming in light winds on the cross. Otherwise we are doing well. We have a set of the latest foils; Paul Meilhat ("Biotherm") has the same ones. They are definitely up to date. Upwind, the new boats should be a bit faster than us. On half-wind courses I think our boat is absolutely strong. The bottom line is that we may have a small performance disadvantage, but we still have to sail. I believe in our qualities. I am extremely happy that we have made it to the starting line as a core team with Jens Kuphal after eight years of persistent work. There were setbacks, but we always believed in ourselves.
What do you think your team is capable of in the pentathlon around the world?
Our offshore aces Ben and Sebastien Simon are highly trained Imoca experts, both engineers. Our women are hardcore performance sailors with an Olympic background and experience of sailing around the world. Phillip Kasüske is the powerhouse on board. On paper, we are versatile and strong, but we have to prove it again. After a few quiet Christmas days with the family, it's time to attack!
Why are you fascinated by the Ocean Race?
I was still young and hungry when the Olympic cancellation for the Star boat came. Tim Kröger (two-time Ocean Race participant, editor's note) is not entirely innocent in my path. He took me under his wing back then and showed me the appeal of offshore sailing. That's when the Ocean Race goal was formed, because it's a high-calibre competition. It was a tough challenge for which I had to change drastically and load new knowledge onto my hard drive. Then there's the adventure: the myth of this race, sailing through the most challenging waters on the planet. I have a lot of respect for what awaits us, but it's a strong motive. I can hardly wait.
