Skipper NameWouter Verbraak (064pts)

About the Skipper

Although a newcomer to the IMOCA class, the Dutch sailor Wouter Verbraak has built up a solid experience  of ocean racing  in particular having taken part in the 2008-2009 Volvo Ocean Race as navigator on board Team Russia, and then on Delta Lloyd. A sought after crewman, he has a lot of prestigious races under his belt, including the Middle Sea Race and the Sydney-Hobart.

A renowned weather expert and router, Wouter Verbraak has advised many skippers in the Vendée Globe, the Route du Rhum and indeed those preparing for the Olympic Games. He was also the router for Virbac-Paprec and Sill, which respectively came first and second in the 2005 Transat Jacques Vabre. Although he has not often sailed aboard a 60-foot IMOCA, the Dutchman certainly knows a lot about the technical aspects of the boat. Taking part in the last edition of the Istanbul Europa Race, as navigator on Estrella Damm enabled him to consolidate his skills.

The first Dutch skipper to join the IMOCA class, Wouter Verbraak replaced Alex Thomson at the start of the second edition of the Barcelona World Race. Alongside Andy Meiklejohn, he soon got to grips with this boat, which is not the easiest to tame. At the end of the double-handed round the world race, Wouter Verbraak’s next goal will be to develop his own 60-foot IMOCA project.