What a couple of years it has been for young American sailor Cole Brauer. First, in 2023, she made a very seamanlike qualifying run solo across the North Atlantic in preparation for the Global Solo Challenge Race.
Then, she raced non-stop around the world via the Great Southern Ocean and managed to finish second in a fleet of 19. In doing so, she became the first American woman to race solo and non-stop around the globe.
Next, she won the 2024 Rolex Yachtswoman of the Year Award, which very rarely goes to marathon solo racers and joins the legendary Dawn Riley as the only other recipient to win for marathon racing offshore.
Following that, she sold her boat First Light to Aussie sailor Elizabeth Tucker and agreed to sail with Liz from Spain to Australia to introduce her to offshore high latitude sailing. It was a 14,000 miles delivery, again into the Southern Ocean.
Big news seems to surround Cole these days and the latest headline is that she has been selected to be a co-skipper aboard Boris Hermann’s IMOCA 60 Malizia. Hermann just completed his second Vendee Globe Race and in the next six months is committed to the IMOCA crewed-boat racing series in Europe.
“Becoming part of Team Malizia is truly a dream come true,” says Cole. “Today is actually my last day on First Light, which I’ve sold, and it also marks the start of a new chapter as co-skipper with this great team I’ve gotten to know over the past year. The first time I experienced foiling on Malizia – Seaexplorer was in New York last year. The feeling was unbelievable! Now, I get to race on this amazing boat, bring my own experience to the team, and fully join the Malizia family. I’m so excited to learn from this remarkable group of people and take part in exciting races of the IMOCA circuit.”
At present, Malizia is being reconfigured for crewed sailing. In the next six months, Herman, Cole and crew will compete in the Course de Caps, a 2,000-mile non-stop race around the British Isles. Then they will race in the Admiral’s Cup in the south of England. Following that, they have entered the new multi-stage, round-Europe event called the Ocean Race Europe.
When she finished second in the Global Ocean Race a year ago, Cole said her next dream was to race aboard foiling IMOCA 60s and maybe even compete in the next Vendee Globe. Even though she’s five feet tall and weighs 100 pounds, don’t be surprised if she does it. She has already made it to the big stage and she has a knack for making dreams come true.
