Overview
- The Malizia 4 entered the water in Lorient on Monday as Team Malizia unveiled its new 18.23‑metre IMOCA for sea trials and race preparation.
- The boat was built over roughly two years with about 85,000 work hours and more than 150 people from Antoine Koch's design team, Finot‑Conq, Gsea Design and CDK Technologies.
- The design is narrower and lighter than the predecessor and features optimized foils, a fully enclosed cockpit, steering wheels instead of a tiller, and onboard sensor and AI systems to aid performance and safety.
- Team Malizia says the new yacht targets roughly a 10% speed gain over the prior generation and plans near‑term entries in the Ocean Race Atlantic and the solo Route du Rhum as part of 2026 testing.
- The trade‑offs include a spartan interior and a much smaller cockpit to save weight, and the boat will be evaluated in sea trials before the team pursues The Ocean Race 2027 and a Vendée Globe 2028 campaign.