Our First Vendée Globe - Completed

When Ollie crossed the finish line of the Vendée Globe on 17th February 2025, it was an incredible moment.

For our small team it represented the successful completion of our first Vendée Globe campaign.

During that time we;

·      bought a boat

·      built a team

·      logged over 50,000 nautical miles

·      spent 158 days at sea racing (not even including deliveries and training!)

·      completed 11 races

·      crossed the Atlantic (three times)

·      and of course, completed a solo, non-stop, unassisted circumnavigation.

Ollie became the first Swiss-German to complete the Vendée Globe and undeniably raised the profile of ocean racing across Switzerland, with almost 3 million views on his social media platforms.

It is incredible to look back and see just how we far we have come.

It was whilst sailing with Alex Thomson on his IMOCA HUGO BOSS in 2021 that Ollie decided it was the right time to start his own campaign.

Ollie quit his role as boat captain and immediately started to raise funds to buy a daggerboard IMOCA, knowing that the older design of yacht is less costly to run and maintain. Vital for a small start-up team on a shoestring budget.

After setting up a Swiss HQ ‘Oliver Heer Ocean Racing AG’ at the lake of Zurich in December 2021, Ollie and his wife, Theresa, moved to France in spring 2022 to establish a base in Port La Forêt. They worked round the clock to establish the base, find French team members, and set up the subsidiary Oliver Heer Ocean Racing SAS, as a commercial business.

The first three months were spent bouncing through short-term rentals and AirBnB’s which was exhausting and added additional upheaval. But once the boat arrived, they found a cottage to rent long term, finally introducing some sense of normality and consistency into otherwise long and frantic days.

Ollie recalls:

“It was hard work. We knew what was involved from working with HUGO BOSS, but it was full-on, we were a tiny team with very limited resources. What we didn’t have in budget we made up for in dedication, determination and resourcefulness.”

Fast forward three years, and we did it!  It is incredible to have such a huge ambition and then to make it happen. We are so grateful for the support of our friends, family, sponsors, partners, suppliers and supporters – your belief in us kept us motivated. We couldn’t have done it without you.

What’s next?

Whilst we’ve successfully completed our first Vendée Globe campaign, that doesn’t mean it’s the end of the story. In fact, we’re just getting started. The team is building on our knowledge and experience, dreaming bigger, aiming higher.

We’re still committed to racing with purpose, flying the flag for Swiss values, supporting climate science and extending our sustainability initiatives to new audiences. 

We don’t have all the answers yet, but we are working hard and looking forward to sharing our journey honestly and transparently.

We hope you will keep watching and continue to #JoinUsOnOurJourney