For Ambrogio Beccaria, 2025 was always going to be a defining year. The 33-year-old Italian skipper arrived at The Ocean Race Europe carrying serious momentum, fresh from victories in the Mini Transat and the Transat Jacques Vabre, with a full IMOCA programme now taking shape around Allagrande Mapei. Long-time partner Mapei backs the campaign, with technical support coming from Thomas Ruyant's TR Racing operation.
The boat itself is a well-proven Antoine Koch design, previously campaigned as Vulnérable, unveiled in Lorient before being transported to Kiel for the race start. Beccaria assembled a formidable crew: Ruyant, Morgan Lagravière, rising star Manon Peyre, veteran Abby Ehler, and OBR Pierre Bourras. The broader objective was equally clear: race at the front of the IMOCA fleet, accumulate offshore miles, and lay the groundwork for a planned Vendée Globe campaign in 2028.
Kiel in the days before the start had an energy all its own. The Sailor's Parade drew large crowds, the docks hummed with last-minute work, and the mood around the Allagrande Mapei camp was confident. The team spoke openly of "achieving the best possible performance."
The race got under way on 10 August into strong winds and dense traffic, with seven IMOCAs driving hard off the start line. Biotherm and Paprec Arkéa pushed to the front, their foils cutting cleanly through the chop. Then, barely two minutes after the gun, everything unravelled. Allagrande Mapei and Team Holcim-PRB, skippered by Rosalin Kuiper, came together in a high-speed side-to-side collision. The impact shredded Allagrande Mapei's J0 headsail, tore the mainsail, and caused serious damage to the starboard shroud system holding up the mast. Both boats turned back towards Kiel almost at once, watching the rest of the fleet disappear over the horizon.
"It's super sad for our whole team," Beccaria said at the dock. "We only made it one mile, after such a huge effort to be here. But we won't give up until there is absolutely no chance."
Other campaigns stepped in quickly to help, with Paprec Arkéa among those lending spare rigging components. TR Racing's second IMOCA, Advens 1, contributed a carbon outrigger. Designer Antoine Koch and engineering firm GSea Design directed the structural assessment, a process thorough enough to require dismantling water ballast systems to inspect a damaged chainplate carrying loads of more than 30 tonnes.
Shore crews worked deep into the night across multiple days. The mainsail was patched, a replacement J0 fitted, and fresh rigging installed throughout. While the technical work continued, Beccaria and his co-skippers mapped out delivery options to reach Portsmouth in time for the second leg.
"It was a rollercoaster," Beccaria admitted. "One moment we thought the race was over, the next we were fixing the last part. Now we're just so happy to be back on track."
On 14 August, four days after the collision, Allagrande Mapei cleared Kiel via the canal and headed for Portsmouth. The team is targeting the start of Leg 2 to Cartagena on 17 August. Protests lodged by both Holcim-PRB and Allagrande Mapei are scheduled to be heard during the stopover, with redress a possibility, though Beccaria's attention is firmly on getting back to racing.
"This comeback is like a dream," he said. "The first start didn't go as planned, but the only way to move forward is to race again. Our motivation is intact, stronger than ever."
Italy's sole IMOCA entry has already given its supporters a story worth telling, built on grit, rapid-response teamwork, and the kind of resolve that offshore campaigns are ultimately measured by.
