Six IMOCA teams have started The Ocean Race Atlantic 2026, setting off on a 3,200-nautical-mile transatlantic sprint from waters off New York to Lorient, France. The international fleet crossed the offshore start line at 1400 UTC on Wednesday (September 2), with forecasts pointing towards a fast and potentially intense passage across the North Atlantic.
The six competing teams are Team Malizia (GER), Team Francesca Clapcich Powered by 11th Hour Racing (USA), United by the Ocean (FRA), DMG MORI Sailing Team (JPN), Embrace The Challenge (SUI) and MSIG Europe (NZL).
Two new-generation IMOCA boats are racing for the first time, while the event has introduced a mandatory 50-50 crew rule, with each four-person racing crew comprising two women and two men.
Clapcich Leads US Entry
Italian-American sailor Francesca Clapcich, the only female skipper in the six-boat fleet, leads Team Francesca Clapcich Powered by 11th Hour Racing. She is joined aboard the foiling 60-foot IMOCA 11th Hour Racing by co-skipper Alberto Bona of Italy, Elodie-Jane Mettraux of Switzerland and France, and British navigator Will Harris.
Skipper Focus: Italian-American sailor Francesca Clapcich is the only female skipper in the six-boat Ocean Race Atlantic fleet, leading the 11th Hour Racing entry on the transatlantic race. Photo: Eloi Stichelbaut
Frenchman Julien Champolion is the team's onboard reporter (OBR), a position that falls outside the four-person racing crew and its gender rule.
For Clapcich, starting from New York carried particular significance. "It's pretty cool to represent both the USA and Italy in this race," she said. "I was born in Italy, I grew up in Italy, and then I moved to the US — I'm a dual citizen now. It's just who I am, my culture."
But the skipper made clear that her focus is firmly on racing.
"It's a race, so I don't do it only for the adventure — we do it because we've got the ability to do well, to push the boat, and compete with the other boats around us," Clapcich said. "Our boat is good in big waves, strong winds, downwind, reaching — better than any other boat in this fleet for the conditions we could face. I'm excited to get going."
Offshore Start Protects Whale-Rich Waters
The six teams had gathered for a send-off in front of the Statue of Liberty on Tuesday before heading offshore towards the starting area, approximately 120 nautical miles from New York City.
The offshore start was established in partnership with the Marine Mammal Advisory Group to keep the IMOCA fleet clear of whale-rich waters around New York Harbour and the wider Atlantic migratory corridor.
From there, the boats face a direct crossing to Lorient, one of the principal centres of the IMOCA offshore racing community.
Each boat also carries an onboard reporter, providing footage and updates during the crossing, including through the event's OnBoard Live Show and race tracker. Click here for the race tracker.
Big Atlantic Weather Ahead
The early forecast points towards a rapid crossing, with the fleet potentially reaching Brittany in less than seven days.
Harris said the boats would initially race on the back edge of a departing low-pressure system before another system develops and moves rapidly eastwards across the Atlantic.
"By Sunday that system will have matured into exactly the breeze our foiling boat wants — expect the fleet flat out and close together, with a dogfight in light air right at the finish deciding the race," Harris said. "It's a big low, and low pressure means big wind, big waves, big storms: exactly what this boat is built for."
The fleet is expected to make extensive use of the Gulf Stream during the crossing, adding another tactical and navigational dimension to the 3,200-mile race.
11th Hour Racing Collecting Ocean Data
Alongside the competition, 11th Hour Racing is carrying an Ocean Race Essential Ocean Parameter unit that automatically measures sea-surface temperature, salinity, dissolved carbon dioxide, dissolved oxygen and atmospheric pressure.
Atlantic Attack: 11th Hour Racing powers through the North Atlantic as Team Francesca Clapcich begins the 3,200-nautical-mile Ocean Race Atlantic sprint from New York to Lorient. Photo: Julien Champolion
The equipment collects around 21,600 measurements each day, with data transmitted to scientific partners including GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel, Ifremer and CNRS.
Clapcich is also carrying Nature's Baton from New York to Lorient as part of the Relay for Nature initiative established by The Ocean Race and Peter Thomson, the UN Secretary-General's Special Envoy for the Ocean.
Before leaving New York, actress and ocean advocate Bailey Bass handed the baton to Clapcich, who placed a message inside reading: "We are trying to take care of you, please take care of us."
The leading IMOCA boats are expected to arrive in Lorient around September 8, although the developing North Atlantic weather will ultimately determine the pace of the inaugural Ocean Race Atlantic.
For Clapcich, it will be her only crewed race of 2026. She will subsequently return to solo training ahead of the Route du Rhum, starting from Saint-Malo for Guadeloupe on November 1.
