Boris Herrmann
It was the last building block that was still missing. So far, the man from Hamburg had only announced that it had succeeded in buying a "top boat of the last generation". Now it is clear which: the "Edmond de Rothschild" of the Gitana team, the boat with which Sébastien Josse retired from the Vendée Globe in third place due to problems with a foil. The 2015 VPLP / Verdier design is one of the best developed Open 60s in the racing circuit and should provide a perfect basis for further development of the Vendée Globe 2020.
Herrmann is driving the project forward together with Pierre Casiraghi and his team "Malizia" from the Yacht Club de Monaco. The Stuttgart real estate entrepreneur Gerhard Senft secured the financing of the Open 60.
Hermann's new Open 60, the ex- "Edmond de Rothschild" from Sébastien Josse
"This boat belongs to the latest generation of the Open 60 and offers real potential for victory, which we can develop further in the long term," said Boris Herrmann. The Gitana team built the boat in 2015 and then modified it continuously. In addition to the "Banque Populaire", it is considered to be the best-positioned team in the Imoca scene, employing its own development departments and engineers. Herrmann continues: "Our focus is anyway on increased reliability. This also includes the development of new, even more efficient foils, in the form of which we can see more room for improvement."
Gitana skipper Sébastien Josse from France was one of the top favorites of the still running Vendée Globe with the Open 60, but had to give up halfway near Australia in third place. A sword was damaged in the storm, threatening to destroy the sword case, which could have led to uncontrollable water ingress. The boat is currently being brought to France on a freighter. There, the Gitana team refits the boat before it will probably be handed over to the Malizi and Boris Herrmann team in March / April.
Until then, international specialists around Boris Herrmann will concentrate on the search for a title sponsor. For presentations and preparations, the navigator even reluctantly decided not to attempt another record with the "Idec Sport" trimaran, which is currently around a day ahead of the record halfway through the Jules Verne Trophy.
Herrmann is supported, among others, by his sailing friend Pierre Casiraghi, the businessman and Vice President of the YCM. After a successful premiere season together, the eldest son of Princess Caroline of Monaco will also contest the planned two-man regattas with Herrmann at the Open 60 on the foiling GC32 catamaran "Malizia". In addition to two transatlantic races per year, longer appearances in Germany are on the agenda.