The fourth leg of The Ocean Race Europe 2025 began in Mediterranean style, with sunlit seas and a lively departure from Nice. At 1700 local time the IMOCA fleet unfurled their Code Zeros into an eight-knot breeze, powering away from the line. Holcim-PRB, skippered by France’s Nico Lunven, made the sharpest start, while Paul Meilhat’s Biotherm also surged clear.
Just eight miles in, Biotherm snatched early points at the Monaco scoring gate, edging Holcim-PRB, before the fleet settled into the long 550-nautical mile run to Genova. The glamour quickly faded. By nightfall, the wind collapsed into patches of near calm along the French and Corsican coasts, turning the leg into a tactical chess match.
Paprec Arkéa briefly stole the lead by keeping momentum when others stalled, but the top four — Biotherm, Holcim-PRB, Paprec Arkéa, and Italy’s Allagrande Mapei — remained locked within a handful of miles. Behind them, Team Malizia, Be Water Positive, and Team Amaala trailed by about 20 miles, still within reach if conditions turned.
Corsica and the Strait of Bonificio
The notorious Strait of Bonifacio loomed as the first great test. Funnelling winds between Corsica and Sardinia accelerated from a mere five knots to bursts near 30. Crews swapped massive Code Zeros for smaller J3s as the boats tore through the strait, tacking and gybing under pressure. Holcim-PRB initially profited from a bold tactical choice under Corsica, stretching their lead, but the fleet quickly reshuffled.
By the time they cleared Bonifacio and began the climb towards Italy, the contest had split.
A leading quartet — Allagrande Mapei, Biotherm, Holcim-PRB, and Paprec Arkéa — broke away, leaving the trailing trio struggling further south. Exhaustion set in among the frontrunners as sailors pushed through constant manoeuvres with little to no sleep.
The Italian coast and Elba tactics
The next twist came at Elba. Biotherm passed to the east, Holcim-PRB gybed west, but Allagrande Mapei, already positioned to the west, held their line and avoided an extra manoeuvre. Despite dealing with a temporary power failure that left them sailing without instruments for an hour, Ambrogio Beccaria’s Italian team seized the advantage.
By Livorno, Allagrande Mapei had nosed in front — an emotional surge for Beccaria as the race pointed towards his home waters. As the fleet charged up the Italian coast at over 20 knots, the battle remained ferocious. At dawn, the top four were still separated by less than three miles, their foiling IMOCAs weaving into the Gulf of Genoa. Sleep deprivation was total; the racing was relentless.
The Gulf of Genoa fight
Entering the gulf, conditions turned chaotic. Thunderstorms, clouds, and fickle breezes made routing uncertain — “like a fairground in a washing bowl,” one OBR quipped. Holcim-PRB tried a southern move towards Alassio, briefly threatening to escape, but Allagrande Mapei countered smartly and regained control. Every gust, shift, and cloud line carried the potential to swing the outcome. Biotherm’s Benjamin Ferré summed up the mood: “Nobody knows what’s going to happen. We study the Meteo, but in the end it is totally different. You just have to adapt.”
The final sprint and arrivals in Genova
By the final night, suspense gripped the gulf. Forecast models warned of fading winds close to Genova, and ETA projections shifted wildly between 02:30 and 04:00 local time.
At 23:41:14 UTC, Ambrogio Beccaria’s Allagrande Mapei crossed the line to secure a dramatic home victory — completing the leg in 2 days, 8 hours, 41 minutes, and 14 seconds. For Beccaria, it was the perfect homecoming, cheered on by Italian supporters in the early hours. His international crew included seasoned Vendée Globe racer Thomas Ruyant, Morgan Lagravière, and rising talent Manon Peyre.
Paprec Arkéa followed at 00:32:05 UTC to take second, while Biotherm completed the podium at 02:49:57 UTC. The results marked the first time in this edition that Biotherm had missed out on maximum points at either a gate or finish.
Allagrande Mapei banked 7 points, Paprec Arkéa 6, and Biotherm 7 in total (5 for third plus 2 from the Monaco scoring gate). Holcim-PRB, just outside the podium, collected vital points for the standings. The finale captured everything The Ocean Race Europe embodies — glamour and chaos, tactics and luck, speed and stress. For Beccaria, it was a victory of dreams fulfilled, delivering the Italian crowd their long-awaited triumph in Genova.
