Boris Herrmann's Team Malizia First Across the Line as The Ocean Race Atlantic Begins

Boris Herrmann's Team Malizia First Across the Line as The Ocean Race Atlantic Begins © Gauthier Lebec / Team Malizia

The inaugural edition of The Ocean Race Atlantic is under way. Team Malizia's crew, comprising skipper Boris Herrmann (GER), co-skippers Cole Brauer (USA), Justine Mettraux (SUI), Julien Villion (FRA), and onboard reporter Gauthier Lebec (FRA), made an excellent start, crossing the start line of the transatlantic sprint to Lorient, France, in first place.

Sailing on port tack in upwind conditions with a moderate sea state, Malizia 4 led the fleet away from the line as the race across the North Atlantic officially began. The race committee officially confirmed the clear start for all boats a few minutes ago, with Malizia 4 being closely followed across the line by 11th Hour Racing, MSIG Europe, United By The Ocean, DMG MORI Global One, and Embrace The Challenge.

After departing New York yesterday, Malizia 4 and the five other IMOCA race boats reached the start area, located approximately 100 nautical miles offshore, at sunrise on Wednesday, 2 September. Race management postponed the start once more before confirming a start time of 10:00 EDT (local time) / 14:00 UTC / 16:00 CEST. With the fleet starting in daylight, fans were able to follow the action through a short live broadcast featuring onboard camera footage from all six boats and live check-ins with the onboard reporters.

The fleet is now racing approximately 3,200 nautical miles across the North Atlantic to Lorient, France. Depending on the weather conditions, the sprint could take as little as 6.5 to 7.5 days.

At the time of writing, Team Malizia is leading the fleet and has won today's Super Sprint, earning six points on The Ocean Race Atlantic Sprint leaderboard.