Team Childhood 1 brings Relay4Nature baton to Lorient
Ahead of The Ocean Race Europe Team Childhood 1 has made their way across the Baltic Sea to the race starting point in Lorient, France.
After grabbing victory as the overall winners of the Prologue - a series of short, tactical races leading up to The Ocean Race Europe - Team Childhood 1 has made their way across the Baltic Sea to the race starting point in Lorient, France.
Carrying the Relay4Nature baton on board, Arianne Van de Loosdrecht called for stronger policy and protection for the ocean, and swift action when it comes to plastic pollution: “As sailors, we see a lot of plastic, in the middle of the ocean, in harbors, it’s everywhere. On our way to France, we had to remove plastic that was tangled around our propeller. We feel honored to bring the baton from home waters to the start of the race in Lorient. We’re conscious about sustainability and having the baton on board during our journey reminds us even more about the importance of this topic.”
After crossing the Prologue finish line at the South Swedish waypoint, Team Childhood 1 briefly stopped in their home city, The Hague, before continuing their journey to Lorient.
Shore crew Annefleur de Zeeuw described how it did the team good to re-energize before their journey to Lorient: “Everyone was able to see friends and family and re-charge their batteries. As a team, we are excited and ready for the start of The Ocean Race Europe!”
The assembly of teams in Lorient, France will feature 12 yachts from both the V065 and IMOCA 60 classes, with sailors from 23 different nationalities. The Ocean Race Europe, has been designed to showcase fully-crewed offshore racing, in a highly tactical 2,000 nautical mile race course. With each crew list featuring top names in international yacht racing, the teams will need to fight for every nautical mile, completing multiple maneuvers with both speed and precision.
At the starting line of The Ocean Race Europe, the Relay4Nature baton will be passed from Team Childhood 1 to 11th Hour Racing Team, a high-performance IMOCA 60 team renowned for advocating ocean health and sustainability.