The Ocean Race 2022-23: Robert Stanjek opens up on GUYOT Environnement Team Europe’s return to Cape Town

Updated 03/03/2023 at 08:55 GMT

Robert Stanjek has opened up on the disappointment of he and his GUYOT environnement-Team Europe having to turn back to Cape Town due to cracks on their boat. The team were running in second place on day four, around 35 nautical miles behind Team Holcim-PRB in the longest leg in The Ocean Race’s history, before having to make the call to return back to shore.

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Robert Stanjek says he is “very disappointed” about GUYOT environnement-Team Europe having to turn back to Cape Town after sustaining damage on their boat.

The crew were in a good position, running behind Team Holcim-PRB but at the beginning of day four of the third leg, a problem with the hull forced them to head back to the start in Cape Town.

Leg three is the longest in The Ocean Race’s history at 12,750 nautical miles from Cape Town in South Africa to Itajai in Brazil and sees the crews travel along the Southern Ocean.

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Stanjek is an experienced sailor, having represented Germany at the 2012 Olympics in London and was a silver medallist at the 20211 World Championships.

“In general I am very disappointed,” he said. “The Southern Ocean and sailing around the world becomes more and more pure, it was one of my main motivations [for the race].

“I’ve done 1000 races but this was a new adventure so I’m very, very sad that it’s falling apart. I worked seven or eight years to get to the start line of this race and the Southern Ocean leg was basically motivating me for all those years.

“You are never too old and it’s never too late so maybe we have to come back to do this once again.”

Having finished last in the first two legs, GUYOT environnement-Team Europe were hoping to bounce back.

Stanjek revealed he and the team felt they did not push the limits over the boat more than they previously had.

“The conditions we had were rough so the boat was jumping a lot and the acceleration and all the other forces on the boat were very brutal,” he added.

“But I think everybody on the team think agreed that we didn’t put the boat on a new stress level.

“You have to find the limit and not go over it."

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