Helping women get foot in the door

The Magenta x IMOCA Female Leadership Development Program, powered by 11th Hour Racing, is reshaping the future of ocean racing by empowering the next generation of women leaders.

This innovative program provides women with unprecedented access to mentorship, hands-on experience, and leadership roles within the elite IMOCA Class. Through paid apprenticeships, mentees work alongside seasoned professionals at top events, gaining the skills and confidence needed to thrive in leadership positions both on and off the water.

As teams prepared for the Vendée Globe, Americans Cole Brauer and Lindsay Gimple joined their respective teams for an immersive week of work in Lorient, France.

As part of a four-week apprenticeship that also includes preparation for the iconic Vendée Globe, these women are overcoming barriers, contributing to their teams, and gaining invaluable experience that will shape their careers and inspire future generations of female leaders in the class.

Having already completed their first week of work at the New York-Vendée in May, Brauer and Gimple rejoined their respective teams, Team Malizia and Team New Europe. Each of these women is learning from world-class mentors, contributing to real-stakes projects, and stepping confidently into leadership roles.

Gimple has a background in Engineering, and is working with mentor Irina Gracheva, who is a technically-skilled Team Manager for Team New Europe. As part of her apprenticeship, her recent contributions included attending skipper briefings and team manager meetings, reviewing race and safety documents with Irina and Skipper Szabi, and taking the lead on critical safety tasks.

She also took on a pivotal role in New Europe’s sustainability efforts, liaising with team partner Euro-Argo Float to gather resources that will be utilized in the team’s sustainability education. Additionally, she is helping to streamline team operations by organizing the task and calendar database in preparation for the Vendée Globe start in November.

Brauer’s first time onboard with Team Malizia was in NYC during the New York Vendée Race, where she attended hospitality sails with sponsors and got to know the boat and team. She is working with Skipper Boris Herrmann as her mentor to learn about what it takes to prepare and succeed as a Skipper in the IMOCA Class.

In Lorient, Brauer was able to experience more of the performance side of the boat and team preparations, as IMOCA teams went on speed runs in training for the Vendée Globe.

“The Magenta Project and IMOCA Leadership Programme has given me the opportunity to work under Boris and get used to the boat and the IMOCA fleet,” shared Brauer. [This programme] works really well for owmen to get their foot in the door.”

By the end of the next Vendée Globe cycle, the program aims for participating women to be placed within IMOCA teams and in management roles.

Details: www.themagentaproject.org