Biotherm in The Ocean Race Europe: Strength in numbers
by Biotherm 8 Aug 13:17 PDT
10 August 2025
Biotherm in The Ocean Race Europe © TORE
On Sunday 10 August at 3:45 pm local time, Paul Meilhat and his crew comprising Amélie Grassi, Sam Goodchild, Jackson Bouttell and on-board reporter Gauthier Lebec will take the start of The Ocean Race Europe.
All eager to perform well, the sailors and the shore crew, who have been together in Kiel for the past few days, are preparing to live in symbiosis for the next month and a half in what promises to be an epic and intense chapter of offshore racing. They'll be hunting down the initial points up for grabs between Kiel and Portsmouth (south of England) in this rather complicated 850-mile inaugural leg.
"Chasing victory", "being together", "learning", "working as one", "teaming up", "performing well". The men and women of Biotherm are all on the same wavelength in terms of what they're hoping to get from The Ocean Race Europe: making this collective adventure a success. It's something they can believe in too given that there are some top specialists in the discipline aboard a tried and tested boat, which Paul Meilhat has full control over.
For the next month and a half, from the Baltic to the Bay of Kotor, they are also well aware that the human element will be central to performance, as well as a technical variable.
In the meantime, for the Biotherm group and the six other crews competing in the race, the pace is picking up on the crowded dockside in Kiel where a series of exhibition races (runs), a public presentation ceremony, media and briefings await.
Fortunately, the skipper of the boat relishes this pre-race build-up. "All in all, everything's ready to go. Technically and logistically we're sound. The dynamics are good. The risk, as the sporting genius Claude Onesta* would say, is perhaps being over-ready!" jokes Paul Meilhat. "This increase in pressure in terms of the schedule will ensure we promptly get into the swing of things. We've already enjoyed two good sails in Kiel and I'm pleased that we get to follow that up with the runs. The noose is tightening!"
The low-down on the first leg: a fast obstacle course
All that remains then is a limited time working on the scenario for this first 850-mile leg between Kiel and Portsmouth, one of the longest on the programme and a fairly complicated one at that, which will take the competitors from the Baltic Sea to the English Channel via the North Sea.
"It's a course, which is highly restricted by the narrowness of the numerous navigation zones prohibited to shipping (shipping lanes, wind farms...) but it will be a quick obstacle course of around 4 days. It's also a fabulous route with great light in the Baltic Sea and some spectacular spots along the way like the passage under the Great Belt Bridge at the start of the course," warns Benjamin Schwartz, tasked with preparing the navigation for Biotherm during the first two legs.
The first section plays out in the narrow corridor dotted with islands, which leads to Skagen Odde (Scaw Spit), in the far north of Denmark, in a moderate W'ly breeze, which is set to build on Sunday evening through into Monday.
"The pace will be very fast on flat seas so they're going to have a ball," promises Benjamin. From there they will hang a left into the North Sea, offshore of the Danish coast, before setting a course for the entrance to the English Channel, upwind, in an easing breeze, where they will have to negotiate a ridge of high pressure. After a spell of reaching on the back of the ridge of high pressure, the development of a new Atlantic low is casting some doubt over sailing conditions in the English Channel and the finish along England's south coast, which will be swept by relatively strong current due to the Equinox tides.**
"It's a leg where it will be important to know how to make fast headway at the start and where the zones to be avoided are, plus there will be a series of weather phenomena rolling through quickly. This will require a huge amount of vigilance at the chart table," says Benjamin. The bulk of this work will be down to Sam Goodchild, who is in charge of navigation aboard Biotherm.
*Claude Onesta: a coach for 15 years and then team manager for the French team during the glory days of France's handball players
**Analysis of the weather scenario 48 hours before the start
About the human factor and the key points for success in The Ocean Race Europe
Paul Meilhat: "Management of the starts and finishes, the coastal courses at the start of the leg (bonus points) and extreme technical vigilance will be crucial. Every leg counts. The slightest dip in performance, the slightest technical glitch or worse still a retirement would cost very dear. Collectively, it's important that everyone feels that they can trust the others and be able to flourish. Motivating individuals to excel by providing them with the means to express themselves so they can develop their skills, ensures they will be efficient."
Amélie Grassi: "Communication will be very important. We'll need to have multiple briefings and debriefings after each session on the water in order to bring everyone's goals and thoughts in line. We need to avoid leaving things unsaid and having misunderstandings. Everyone needs to fully express themselves to get the best out of each person."
Jackson Bouttell: "The human is the most complex element. It is essential that we're all on the same page working towards the same goal. And it is the team as a whole that will make the difference. A huge part of this race involves the logistical and technical challenges and things never go according to plan. You have to be in a position to react quickly and deal with complicated situations. For many it's a question of effective time management."
Sam Goodchild: "It's important that the whole team is able to stay strong both on land and at sea. On the water, you need to be as open and as adaptable as possible to take the pressure off Paul, as he is the one with the weight on his shoulders. We all know one another well on land but we've only done a small amount of sailing together. We are all versatile. We just need to communicate well with one another so everyone finds their place within the team."
The Ocean Race Europe: 5 legs, 6 races
- Leg 1: Kiel (Germany)- Portsmouth (southern England) 850 nautical miles
- Start on 10 August. ETA at the finish 14 August
- Leg 2: Portsmouth - Cartagena (Spain) via Matosinhos /Porto (Portugal) 1,400 miles
- Start on 17 August. ETA at the finish 23 August
- Leg 3: Cartagena - Nice (France) 650 miles
- Start on 26 August. ETA at the finish 29 August
- Leg 4: Nice - Genoa (Italy) 600 miles
- Start on 31 August. ETA at the finish 3 September
- Leg 5: Genoa - Boka Bay (Montenegro) - 1,000 miles
- Start on 7 September. ETA 15 September
- Boka Bay. Coastal course (awarded the same number of points as a leg)
- Start-finish on 20 September
- Prize-giving on 21 September
The Ocean Race Europe for dummies... a few basic rules
Crew: 4 people aboard, including at least one woman with at least two nationalities represented + one on-board reporter per boat
Shore crew: Access to the boat limited to 5 technicians per team
Technical pit stops: permitted according to certain conditions. In the first 12 hours of racing, minimum 2-hour stoppage time. After the first 12 hours of racing, minimum 6 hours stoppage time.
Number of sails authorised: 9 throughout the duration of the race and just 7 on board during the legs
Ranking and points
The Pro-Ams and runs do not count.
The winner of each leg and the coastal course in Boka Bay wins 7 points, the second 6, the third 5, etc.
Competitors which do not start (DNS) or do not finish (DNF) a leg score 0 points.
Bonus points are awarded for the 1st (2 points) and 2nd (1 point) competitor to pass the scoring gate at the end of the coastal course at the start of each leg.
The Portsmouth (UK) - Cartagena (ESP) leg scores double points. Half the points will be awarded on passing the Porto gate.