“We are in a sport of innovation…” Three skippers are designing new sailboats for the next edition.
For the next Vendée Globe, three skippers have chosen a more modern and environmentally friendly design for their sailboats, here are the details.
Same design, same mold, same foils to create three competing boats… For the first time in the history of the Vendée Globe, three skippers have chosen to pool the design of their sailboat in order to reduce their environmental footprint while controlling costs.
And in doing so, none of the three wants to sacrifice their sporting objectives. Two are, moreover, stars of the open sea: Thomas Ruyant from northern France and the German Boris Herrmann, who have already achieved Top 10 finishes in the very demanding solo, non-stop, and unassisted race around the world. The third, Lois Berrehar, has no Vendée Globe experience, but the mere fact that he was recruited by the prestigious Banque Populaire team shows that he will not be starting the next edition, in 2028, as a mere extra.
“We are in a sport of innovation. The race is won on the water, but also on land, in the design offices,” observes Herrmann. “We want to participate in this technological competition and we think we can do it better together.” “We decided to build the same boat, working with the architect Antoine Koch,” continues the Malizia skipper, a long-time friend of Ruyant, with whom he notably raced in the 2017 Transat Jacques-Vabre in doubles. For months, they have been working together with Berrehar under the leadership of Antoine Koch.
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“More Brains”
“It’s the assurance of mobilizing more brains to think about different options. I find it interesting to do it with the teams of skippers who already have strong experience in the Vendée Globe,” appreciates the newcomer. For the sailors and their sponsors, the stakes of such an association are not only sporting, but also economic. The latest generation Imocas, prototypes made mostly of carbon, are becoming increasingly expensive.
“The mere pooling of tooling for three sailboats should allow us to reduce the impact of construction and then make economies of scale,” says Antoine Koch, navigator and chief architect of the project. According to several sources, the design and construction of a high-performance foiling Imoca costs around seven million euros today. “We are not going to divide the price by three, but this approach allows us to reduce it,” says Ruyant. It should also allow the three skippers to be in line with environmental standards.
In its latest regulations, the Imoca class has imposed a reduction of 60 tons or more in carbon dioxide emissions in the construction process of new boats, compared to boats designed for the 2024 Vendée Globe. This eco-score “is part of our problems,” says Boris Herrmann. The goal is to do at least as well but use less.” Same mold, same foils, same hull shape, these will be “twin boats,” say the three skippers. This collaboration seems natural in Ruyant’s career. In 2023, the king of transatlantic races (victories in the Route du Rhum 2010 and 2022, Transat Jacques Vabre 2021 and 2023) integrated the Briton Sam Goodchild into his TR Racing team, entrusting him with the helm of his old sailboat.
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Launch from 2026
For two years, the two men trained together and shone in Imoca, each on a different boat that bore the same name during the 2024-2025 edition of the Vendée Globe: Vulnerable. “I was able to see through this shared adventure that healthy competition leads to doing some pretty fantastic things,” says Ruyant.
Launched at full speed around the world on his Imoca last winter, the Northerner was already thinking about the future: “It started from a desire to design a new boat, to evolve,” continues the one who finished 7th in the last Vendée Globe. The CDK shipyard in Lorient (Morbihan) has already started work on Ruyant’s sailboat, who hopes to find a new sponsor soon to accompany him to the next Vendée Globe. The launch of his monohull is scheduled for June 2026.
A few weeks later, Herrmann should see his own sailboat come out of the hangar. Last to arrive, Berrehar will wait until the first quarter of 2027 before being able to enjoy the oceans. After that, nothing is yet set in stone, but the skippers hope to continue to bring common evolutions to the three sailboats thanks to their sailing experiences. The next solo round the world race may therefore be won by three.
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