Video
4.5.22
Ready for the battle?
First event of the IMOCA GLOBE SERIES 2022, the 3rd edition of the Guyader Bermuda 1000 Race will be held from May 5th to 13th.
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| Age | 56 (5/8/67) |
|---|---|
| Top performance | Finisher of the Vendée Globe 2020-21 |
| Joined Imoca on | 2016 |
| Team | DMG MORI SAILING TEAM |
| Base | LORIENT |
| Partners | DMG MORI |
Kojiro Shiraishi, is a sailor who has sailed around the globe three times. Born in Kamakura, Japan, a costal town south of Tokyo, Shiraishi has always admired the ocean and wondered what was hiding across the oceans.
Few years after witnessing the exceptional victory of the skipper Yukoh Tada during the BOC Ocean Race in 1983 (First Asian to win a round the world sailing race), Shiraishi has asked Tada to become his apprentice.
A master - apprentice relationship that didn't last long due to the sudden death of Tada who commited suicide in 1991.
Since his tragic loss, he dedicates all his races to his Master, Yukoh Tada.
His first round the world sailing was at the age of 26. (Youngest person around the world single handed, non-stop, without assistance at the time)
He raced his first around the globe race in 2002 during the Around Alone where he finished 4th (Class 40), then in the Velux 5 Oceans in 2006 where he finished 2nd (IMOCA).
After more than 10 years, he comes back on the IMOCA circuit in 2016 by participating in the New York - Vendee Race, (7th IMOCA), at the same time qualifying for his dream event, the Vendee Globe.
His dream comes true after participating in the Vendee Globe, however the Everest of the seas has been cruel to him. An early dismast after a month of racing near the coast of South Africa obliges him to retire the race.
On November 6, 2016, he realized his dream, his participation in the Vendée Globe. The Everest of the seas that was cruel for him, because after a month of racing, he dismasted and abandoned off South Africa.
He will start again on the round the world race in 2020 and becomes the first Asian to have finished the Vendée Globe. On DMG MORI Global One, Kojiro achieved a feat. After tearing his mainsail in the Theta storm, the sailor spent days repairing it and managed to set off again and complete the loop in 94 days.
In 2022, the skipper started the Route du Rhum but was forced to retire just a few minutes after the start due to a collision with one of his competitors. His goal now is to gain as many miles as possible in 2023 to ensure his participation in the Vendée Globe in 2024.
2022: Route du Rhum - Abandon (colision)
2022: Guyader Bermudes 1000 Race - 14th
2020-21: Vendée Globe - 16th (94d 21h 32m 56s)
2020: Vendée-Arctique-Les Sables d'Olonne - 10th
2016: Vendée Globe - ABD
2016: Transat NY - Vendée - 7th
| Name | DMG MORI GLOBAL ONE |
|---|---|
| Sail number | JPN 11 |
| Architect | VPLP |
| Construction | 2019, Multiplast, Vannes (France) |
| Former names |
| Length | 18,28 m |
|---|---|
| Beam | 5,85 m |
| Draught | 4,50 m |
| Weight | 8 tonnes |
| Mast height | 29 m |
| Mast type | Wing mast |
| Foils | Yes |
| Sail area max. | |
| Upwind | 320 m2 |
| Downwind | 600 m2 |
First event of the IMOCA GLOBE SERIES 2022, the 3rd edition of the Guyader Bermuda 1000 Race will be held from May 5th to 13th.
•••Thirty one of the 33 skippers who competed in the 9th Vendée Globe mustered in Les Sables-d'Olonne today for the official prize giving and closing ceremony which saw Yannick Bestaven (Maître-CoQ IV) receive top award as …
•••"It’s taken longer than planned, but when I see all these people I know, it really cheers me up. It’s taken me 30 years to complete this voyage to finish what my master Yukoh Tada wanted to do and I’m proud of that."
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