Kojiro Shiraishi - The first Asian skipper to finish the Vendée Globe
The professional sailing team DMG MORI SAILING TEAM and skipper Kojiro Shiraishi completed the single-handed, non-stop, round the world yacht race Vendée Globe 2020-2021. Kojiro Shiraishi has been known as the first Asian to participate at the Vendée Globe in 2016. Now for his second time, he finished the race as the first Asian sailor with a race time of 94d 21h 32m 56s.
DMG MORI SAILING TEAM Race Result
| Skipper: | Kojiro Shiraishi |
| Foil name: | DMG MORI Global One |
| Rank: | 16/33 8 retirements |
| Race time: | 94d 21h 32m 56s |
| Total distance: | 29,067.67 nm (54,833km) November 8th, 2020 ~ February 11th, 2021 |
| Average speed: | 12.76 knot 23.63 km/h |
Message by skipper Kojiro Shiraishi
I would like to thank all my sponsors, supporters, and fans for their great support. The completion of the Vendée Globe has been my goal ever since I started sailing. I have spent almost 30 years to arrive to this day. After my first participation in 2016, that wish had become even stronger. I am really happy that I finally completed the Vendée Globe. To me, it is a race that fulfills my curiosity towards life, it makes me feel alive and completely connected to the earth. I think my mentor Yukoh Tada must be very happy for me as well.
At some points I honestly thought the race could be over for me. I was still recovering from an operation of June 2019 and right at the beginning of the race my mainsail was severely damaged. However, thanks to my team that supported me 24 hours and everybody who believed in us no matter what, I was empowered to sail until the end.
I will continue to sail with all my energy and optimism to send positive news to the world and to let the people in Asia and Japan know how amazing sailing is. Again, thank you very much for all your support.