A Coruña, Spain — 7 March 2024 — Her arrival day would have been perfect to align with International Women’s Day (8 March), but Cole Brauer is already ahead of the game. The young American has made it to international headlines, and likely your social media feed, on her own terms, in her own style. Today, in A Coruña, Spain after 130 days at sea, Cole realised her goal of becoming the first American female to race non-stop around the world.
Cole is unapologetically female and has taken her social media fans (which at writing total a near half-million on Instagram) for an unfiltered look at what it means for a woman to be the captain – on a journey made for mad men. And not only the captain, but also the engineer, the sailmaker, the chef, the medic, the media producer… as for the last few months she’s been racing solo around the world proving that women CAN in fact do it all.
There were many that said that she can’t, couldn’t, shouldn’t… But there were also a group of believers, those who have been on the “Cole” train the second they experienced her infectious spirit. From her application to The Magenta Project mentoring programme that caught our eye, to the many years after actively serving, living and breathing The Magenta Project mission, Cole had built up a worldwide support network – and THEN she went viral.
That bubbly, fierce, passionate and driven-above-all Cole we all know and love, then became the world’s morning coffee routine. Check in with Cole any day on her round the world journey, and you knew you’d hear a good friend tell you about another wild day in her life. Cole is unequivocally the most followed sailor on the internet, and there’s no doubt why. She has made sailing relatable to everyone: women, men, non-sailors, sailors… by showing the good, the bad, and the ugly. Tears of joy, sorrow, bliss, pain, and her iconic “Hey guys” introductions paired with the shaka sign-offs – have all made sailing around the world finally look like the pure, human vs. nature vs. self, epic-yet-achievable adventure it is!
Along the way, she also had a core group of advocates and mentors who not only believed in her, but supported her. Countless individuals, men and women alike, saw her unrelenting energy and spirit, knowing that whatever Cole wanted to do, she would do it. After sailing with Alex Thomson in 2022 for a day organised by The Magenta Project with his recent IMOCA 60 campaign, Alex didn’t scoff when she shared her goal of doing the Vendee Globe one day. The world-famous ocean racer saw her for her pure passion and potential, and offered advice for how she could one day reach that goal.
Another one of the core developmental opportunities for Cole was her tenure sailing doublehanded with Mike Hennessy on Class40 Dragon. Here, Cole was given the opportunity to serve as an equal partner and rise as talent in her own right. The mentoring and opportunities that Mike and Dragon offered Cole were critical in her advancement as an offshore sailor. Mike believed in Cole, and Cole seized every opportunity to the fullest.
But the belief all really started with one: Cole. She believed she could do it despite all of the other push back and turn downs. She saw other women like Sam Davies competing at an elite level, and she knew she had support from her networks like The Magenta Project and within her US sailing community.
“The Magenta Project has been incredibly important in bringing women together in this industry, I truly believe that they took the first AND very necessary steps into an uncharted world of females becoming professionals in this industry. It’s not an easy endeavour. But it’s getting a whole lot easier with them breaking down the walls so we can all complete our dreams. I’m doing mine right now, not very long ago this would have seemed impossible,” shared Cole Brauer on the eve of her Globe Solo Challenge Race finish.
Now, as Cole has completed her first big goal, her fans and followers all are wondering: “What’s next.” For sure, it will one day be the Vendee Globe for Cole and there will be plenty of steps between. But with Cole’s mind set on that goal, we can all certainly expect the privilege of being passengers with her for another race around the world soon enough.
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About The Magenta Project
The Magenta Project is a collective of passionate people committed to developing pathways and generating opportunities for more equity and inclusion in sailing, leading with gender. The UK-registered charity works with a wide range of individuals and organisations around the world to make a positive and progressive impact on the sport of sailing, from grassroots initiatives to partnerships with international events and leagues.
Established by the sailors from the all-female Team SCA in the Volvo Ocean Race 2014-2015, the programme has evolved into a network of men and women around the world who support developing careers in sailing through events and initiatives such as the annual Mentoring Programme. www.themagentaproject.org
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