They just kept coming! Nothing could, or would stop them. The McIntyre Ocean Globe has truly shown the depth of human stories over the past eight months and this story is a classic. Yes, it’s a yacht race around the world celebrating the 50th anniversary of that first 1973 Whitbread Race, but everyone knows it’s far more than that. Amateur sailors have not been able to face this challenge for over 30 years. It’s a life-changing adventure taking on all the oceans, pushing crews and yachts to their limits, forcing them to push hard and ask difficult questions of themselves. Every sailor who dares to slip lines in the OGR and tackle the three Great Capes is not the same person when they cross that finish line.
This classic voyage, the dream of many sailors, is not for the faint-hearted. Crews must dig deeper than they ever thought possible and believe everything is possible – Translated 9 ITL (09) and her unbreakable crew epitomes this spirit of the OGR.
Leg 1, Southampton to Cape Town was a successful start to the T9 campaign finishing 1st in IRC and 2nd in line honours. Podium positions continued from Cape Town to Auckland, when they ranked 1st in IRC and line honours. But their luck would run out during Leg 3.
Translated 9 slipped lines from Auckland on January 15th bound for Punta del Este, rounding Cape Horn on February 6th. But the Swan 65 was hit with strong winds and was knocked down twice. On February 8th, Marco Trombetti, co-skipper onboard contacted OGR Race Control to inform them of damage to the hull and rudder skeg resulting in significant water ingress and flexing. Two cracks had developed in the stern sections of the yacht causing water ingress. They were forced to divert to the Falklands to carry out repairs. This resulted in them being removed from the rankings for Leg 3 – their dreams of winning the race overall were dashed.
But the crew worked around the clock to repair the delamination in the hull and rudder skeg and set sail in time to start Leg 4, Punta del Este to Cowes. On March 5th, the Leg 4 start witnessed T9 crew still loading provisions as all other yachts had departed the Yacht Club Punta Del Este marina for the start line.
Then disaster would strike once again on 5th April. A heavy broach in 50-knot gusts slammed them down, reopening the previously repaired cracks in their hull around the rudder skeg. The Leg 3 repairs had failed again, forcing a diversion to Madeira. They had already sailed over 5000 nm in the final leg of the Ocean Globe round-the-world race and were leading IRC at the time. They remained undeterred and vowed to cross the finish line despite being out of the rankings.
“You know, it was different from what we expected. It was full of emotions, but it was something unforgettable for life, for sure. We learned something important that we want to share. Sometimes problems seem way bigger than what you think is possible for you, but believe me, they’re not. If you start tackling those big problems, you grow, you become bigger, and the problems become smaller. At one point, you succeed and solve them. So, believe in humanity, believe in yourself, and never, never give up.”
MARCO TROMBETTI, LEG 1 & 3 CO-SKIPPER OF TRANSLATED 9 & CO-FOUNDER/ CHAIRMAN AT TRANSLATED.
“This classic challenge is a mix of pride, happiness and sadness. I’m so happy I’m so proud of all the crew. It’s an achievement – honestly this is something…. when the boat broke, it was the saddest moment, I felt desperate. I felt that it was not fair after thirty-two days of hard work and I felt we didn’t deserve that honestly. I felt so bad for the people because I did only one leg but the rest of the crew did it all and the people were away from their homes and family since last august and I felt they did really deserve to have this arrival.”
ISABELLE ANDRIEU, MARCO’S WIFE, LEG 4 CREW OF TRANSLATED 9 & CO-FOUNDER/ CHAIRWOMAN AT TRANSLATED.
Translated 9 previously raced in the 1977 Whitbread Round the World Race as ADC Accutrac, then skippered by the first ever female, British sailor Clare Francis MBE, who led her to a fifth-place finish. The Swan 65 was lovingly restored for the September start of the McIntyre OGR in Southampton where many of the ADC Accutrac crew came to visit Translated 9 at the Whitbread reunion. It was an emotional moment when Clare stepped onboard her Swan once again and was greeted by the new crew preparing to race around the world once again. To everyone’s great surprise and real joy, she and three of her original crew were on Trinity landing as Marco and Translated 9 finished their circumnavigation and the McIntyre OGR.
Marco Trombetti and Isabelle Andrieu, founders of ‘Translated’ a translation service that pioneered the use of artificial intelligence to help professional translators, bought and restored the iconic yacht specifically to participate in the OGR. They advertised for crew to sail under the motto ‘We Believe in Humans’. Over 1500 applications were received. A young international crew were put together – led and inspired by the ever-enthusiastic Italian couple who themselves would sail on various legs of the circumnavigation.
Vittorio Malingri, the legendary Italian sailor whose father, Franco, and uncle, Doi,took part in the first Whitbread would take the helm on Leg 1 and 2. His son Nico would join Translated 9 as first mate.. On leg 3 Vittorio Malingri left the boat and Golden Globe Race sailor Simon Curwen took over as co-skipper with Marco Trombetti having been navigator on the previous legs. Then Nico Malingri took over as co-skipper on Leg 4 with Simon Navigator once again. Nico was happy to cross the finish line and is already thinking about the 2027 OGR!
“I have to say thank you to everyone who helped us—I can’t name everyone, but thank you all.… It’s been a great journey, and for storytelling, it was great because it created so much following. Overcoming these problems made it a race to remember. I was saying earlier that I wished it was my last time in the south of the ocean, and now it seems I have to go back. ” NICO MALINGRI, LEG 4 CO-SKIPPER OF TRANSLATED9.
To honor their fellow competitors in the fleet, Marco Trombetti and Translated 9 will host the OGR prizegiving in Rome on June 21st. Only one yacht is still sailing toward the finish, Swan 57 EXPLORER (AU) 28 with an ETA of 12th May 2024.
The Ocean Globe Race will run again in 2027 and the Pre Notice of Race and entry forms are available HERE. Entries are now open and 13 expressions of interest have already been received.
