Boris Herrmann's Malizia 4 set for racing debut as Team Malizia takes on The Ocean Race Atlantic
by Team Malizia 28 Aug 06:19 PDT
1 September 2026
Malizia 4 is set for her racing debut © Alice Callow / Team Malizia
From launching their new Malizia 4 race yacht in France to crossing the Atlantic and sailing more than 6,500 nautical miles in less than two months, Team Malizia has been through a fast-paced period of testing and training. Boris Herrmann and a new crew combination now face a fleet mixing proven race machines with the latest generation of IMOCAs in The Ocean Race Atlantic, a new 3,200-nautical-mile sprint from New York to Lorient and an important step as the team builds towards The Ocean Race 2027.
Boris Herrmann's Team Malizia is ready to take on the inaugural The Ocean Race Atlantic, a new fully crewed transatlantic race for the IMOCA fleet, with its newly launched Malizia 4 set to make its competitive debut. Six teams from six nations will line up in New York City for the 3,200-nautical-mile sprint across the North Atlantic to Lorient, France.
Starting on 1 September, crews of four sailors and one onboard reporter will race for approximately eight to nine days, navigating changing weather systems and challenging North Atlantic conditions. For the first time in a fully crewed IMOCA race, each team's four-sailor crew will feature an equal gender split, with two women and two men. If conditions allow, the race could also provide an opportunity for teams to challenge the 24-hour monohull distance record, which Team Malizia has held since 2023.
For Team Malizia, the race is the first opportunity to put its new boat through its paces in competition after her launch in Lorient on 6 July and more than 6,500 nautical miles of sailing already completed in less than two months. Skipper Boris Herrmann (GER) will be joined aboard Malizia 4 by co-skippers Cole Brauer (USA), Justine Mettraux (SUI) and Julien Villion (FRA), with onboard reporter Gauthier Lebec (FRA) documenting the race for fans worldwide.
"I'm very eager to put the new Malizia 4 through her first big test in a race," said Boris Herrmann. "I feel very confident with this crew. They're some of the best sailors in the world, and I'm proud and honoured to sail alongside them. We've sailed a lot together during testing, and we know each other well from the sailing world. They're all superstars and some of the most sought-after sailors in the sport. I think we will make a very strong team together."
The fleet includes an interesting mix of boats, designs and experience. In the battle of new designs, Boris Herrmann's Malizia 4 (Antoine Koch design) will go head-to-head with Kojiro Shiraishi's new-generation DMG MORI Global One (Guillaume Verdier design). "From what we've seen so far, the rumours around the dock are that DMG MORI Global One is particularly fast downwind", noted Boris Herrmann. "From our side, we've seen that our boat performs very well upwind. That could make for a really interesting comparison between the two yachts. Besides that, it will also be a duel between two new boats racing against four boats from previous generations that have already been very well tested and developed."
A particularly familiar yacht will be on the start line: Skipper Francesca Clapcich will race aboard 11th Hour Racing, the former Malizia - Seaexplorer, alongside Team Malizia's long-time co-skipper Will Harris. The boat is a proven and reliable platform, while the British sailor knows her inside out after thousands of miles aboard her with Team Malizia. It will be the first time Team Malizia competes directly against their former boat and long-time team member Will Harris, creating a unique reunion at sea.
"If they beat me, of course, it will be a disaster for me!", Boris Herrmann said with a laugh. "Jokes aside, I can't wait to see how we perform, especially against DMG MORI Global One and our old boat. And at the same time, this kind of rivalry is what makes racing interesting. We also have the two sisters racing against each other: Justine on our boat and Elodie-Jane on the other one. So there's definitely an internal friendly rivalry as well. It will be short-lived, however: both Francesca and Will will be back in Team Malizia colors aboard Malizia 4 for The Ocean Race around the world in 2027. The German skipper added: "In the meantime, having Will race with Francesca allows him to share his experience, strengthens the collaboration between our teams, and creates further opportunities for our wider Malizia squad to sail together in race mode ahead of next year's round-the-world event."
In The Ocean Race Atlantic, Team Malizia will also meet Paul Meilhat's crew again, racing onboard United By The Ocean (boat formerly known as Biotherm), one year after their encounter during The Ocean Race Europe won by the French sailor and his team. The race will also bring together the teams of Ollie Heer (Embrace The Challenge) and Conrad Colman (MSIG Europe), adding further depth to a fleet that combines new and older generation foiling boats.
The Ocean Race Atlantic also connects two cities that hold particular significance for Team Malizia: New York has become a familiar stop for Boris Herrmann and his team - and a particularly special starting point for Cole Brauer, who was born and raised in New York State - while Lorient is home to their technical base and one of the world's major IMOCA sailing hubs.
"I'm very excited to race in this new event, especially with this team and aboard our new Malizia 4", explained the American sailor. It's pretty special to be starting from New York, surrounded by friends, and then racing back to Lorient, where the boat was launched and where I've really found my place with Team Malizia. It feels like a very fitting way to tie in all my experiences with the team."
As they sprint to France, the six teams will need to balance outright speed with tactical decisions as they navigate the tricky conditions of the North Atlantic. Co-skipper and navigator Julien Villion commented: "It's still too early for a detailed forecast, but we have a good idea of what to expect. Leaving the US East Coast in late summer, we could encounter unstable, potentially thundery systems and rapidly forming transition zones. The Gulf Stream and exclusion zones soon after the start will also strongly influence the routing and limit tactical options. Weather models can disagree significantly in this part of the Atlantic, as we saw during our delivery to the US. Once offshore, it becomes a more typical Ocean passage, and we'll have to wait for a clearer picture to see which systems offer the best route to Europe. Approaching the Bay of Biscay and Lorient, a high-pressure system could once again reshuffle the race."
During this transatlantic race, Team Malizia will once again carry its OceanPack. The automated laboratory collects crucial measurements of sea-surface CO2, temperature and salinity and the data is made freely available to scientists to help improve understanding of the Ocean's role in the climate system. Malizia 4 has already gathered valuable scientific data since her launch in July, adding to the long-term dataset Team Malizia has been building since 2018 in collaboration with its scientific partners. The team also continued its work with Ocean observation instruments, including the deployment of a drifter buoy during the delivery to New York.
The Ocean Race Atlantic starts from New York City on 1 September 2026. Before the start, the six teams will take part in the Sailors' Parade and Dock-Out Show before sailing past the Statue of Liberty. The parade of boats in front of Manhattan will be broadcast live (see timings below). The fleet then heads out to the virtual start line located approximately 100 nautical miles offshore. The race is expected to start at 20:30 earliest (local time / 02:30 CEST).
Team Malizia's A Race We Must Win - Climate Action Now! mission which combines sailing, science, education and partnerships is only possible due to the strong and long-lasting commitment from its six main partners: Hapag-Lloyd, Schütz, KPMG Germany, the Yacht Club de Monaco, EFG International, and Zurich Group Germany. These partners band behind Team Malizia to support its campaign, each of them working towards projects in their own field to innovate around climate solutions.
How to follow The Ocean Race Atlantic
Follow the start in New York
The fleet departs from Brooklyn Bridge Marina in New York on 1 September 2026. Following the Sailors' Parade and Dock-Out Show (10:35-11:30 EDT/local time), the six IMOCA teams will sail past the Statue of Liberty before heading into the open Atlantic, bound for Lorient, France. The sailing/exhibition start along Downtown Manhattan and past the Statue of Liberty will be broadcast live on The Ocean Race's YouTube channel on 1 September from 12:00 EDT (New York) / 16:00 UTC / 18:00 CEST (Europe) for approximately 60 minutes. The race start line is located approximately 100 nautical miles offshore. The earliest possible start is later that day at 20:30 EDT (00:30 UTC / 02:30 CEST on 2 September) and will not be broadcast live by The Ocean Race.
- Behind-the-scenes throughout the day on our social media platforms
- Official Exhibition Start live broadcast by The Ocean Race - from 12:00 EDT (18:00 CEST)
- Website switch to race mode with our tracker featured on the homepage
- Start press release and website article - 1 September after the Exhibition Start + flash info update after Race start line crossing
- First video sent from onboard about the start on our YouTube channel - the next day (2 September)
Follow the race across the Atlantic
- Daily news from onboard: video, photos, or audio notes - on our website and all our social media channels (Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube & TikTok)
- Daily race tracker updates here
- Daily boat feed on YouTube (TBC if daily, depending on conditions, content availability, etc.) - most often late afternoon
- Press releases for important moments in the race
- Onboard content available for media on image bank
- Onboard Live - Daily Show: 30 min onboard live show hosted by The Ocean Race, live on their YouTube channel at 11:00 EDT (NY-USA) / 17:00 CEST (Europe) / 15:00 UTC daily from 2 to 8 September (and available for replay after airing live)
- 24h live feed using outside onboard camera - available via race tracker
- YouTube live planned for each boat arrival in Lorient