Globe40 sets sail – OTTO WULFF goes around the world!
30,000 nautical miles, 140 days at sea, sailing past Australia and South America: Lennart Burke (26) and Melwin Fink (23) are setting off on their "Next Generation Boating – Around the World" project, embarking on a global sailing adventure.
OTTO WULFF is on board, supporting the two Hamburg sailors. Courage, vision, and team spirit — these are the values our company stands for. We aim to inspire young people to take risks and embrace new challenges.
Sailing around the world together on a boat just 12.5 meters long, facing wind and waves, testing their limits, and enduring weeks of isolation: the adventure is “so crazy that you can hardly comprehend it at first,” says Lennart Burke. “For us, it’s like climbing Mount Everest.”
Burke and Fink: “We’re proud that OTTO WULFF believes in us!”
Conquering the world’s highest mountain or sailing around the globe in a small boat both require support — a team behind the team, a solid foundation. “OTTO WULFF’s sponsorship makes our project possible in the first place. We’re incredibly proud that OTTO WULFF believes in us and is helping us turn this big dream into reality. We want to sincerely thank OTTO WULFF and all its employees,” explained Melwin Fink at the farewell event at the Hamburg shipyard.
Globe40: 30,000 nautical miles around the world
“Cast off!” for the Hamburg duo. On August 31, Lennart and Melwin set sail from Lorient, France, kicking off their “Globe40” adventure. The prologue stage takes them from the offshore sailing hub to Cádiz, Spain. Over six more legs, the two-handed regatta will carry the fleet of 16 boats 30,000 nautical miles (about 55,000 kilometers) across the world’s oceans and through diverse climate zones, past Australia and South America, and by legendary sailing landmarks such as the Cape of Good Hope and Cape Horn.
The young sailors will be at sea for a total of eight months. We’ll be following Lennart and Melwin closely, reporting on both the challenges and the highlights of their circumnavigation.
Team spirit, vision, and courage: the drive to achieve
The Globe40 sailing project by the duo stands for passion, creativity, and perseverance, requiring team spirit, vision, and courage—qualities that also define OTTO WULFF on a daily basis and are essential on our construction sites.
As a Hamburg-based company with strong Hanseatic ties to the water, we aim to support and encourage young people like Lennart and Melwin to take initiative, actively shape the future, and pursue their dreams.
"Our goal is to become the youngest team in history to sail around the world in race mode and show what is possible when you give your all for your dreams."
Lennart Burke and Melwin Fink
Lennart and Melwin got a firsthand look at what drives and distinguishes OTTO WULFF during their visit to THE TIDE construction site before departing for Lorient. OTTO WULFF is currently executing one of the largest shell construction projects in the company's history in HafenCity. Carsten Henzel, authorized signatory for infrastructure construction and an avid sailor, along with project construction manager Marina Schmitz, accompanied the two sailors on their brief visit to THE TIDE.
OTTO WULFF and Next Generation Boating: Perfect Match?
"Sailing and construction share an incredible number of parallels. We are a Hanseatic construction company with a strong connection to the water. Sometimes the storm comes from the left, sometimes a tornado from the right—the conditions are not always ideal. As a company, we need to face the future with courage and continuously adapt to new challenges," says Carsten Henzel.
Just like mountaineers tackling Mount Everest, or two young sailors from Hamburg circumnavigating the globe in a small boat.
Globe40: schedule, route, distances and key stages
Prologue: Lorient (France) → Cádiz (Spain)
Start: Sunday, August 31, 2025
Distance: ~900 nautical miles
Arrival in Cádiz: September 4–5, 2025
Classification: Counts towards overall ranking with a coefficient of 0.5
Leg 1: Cádiz → Mindelo (Cape Verde)
Start: Sunday, September 14, 2025
Distance: ~1,500 nautical miles
Arrival: ~September 20, 2025
Leg 2: Mindelo → Réunion (Indian Ocean)
Start: Thursday, October 2, 2025
Distance: ~7,050 nautical miles
Arrival: ~November 1, 2025
Highlights: Equator crossing, rounding the Cape of Good Hope
Leg 3: Réunion → Sydney (Australia)
Start: Friday, November 21, 2025
Distance: ~5,100 nautical miles
Arrival: ~December 15, 2025
Special features: Crossing the Roaring Forties, Bass Strait
Leg 4: Sydney → Valparaíso (Chile)
Start: Thursday, January 1, 2026
Distance: ~6,400 nautical miles
Arrival: ~January 31, 2026
Leg 5: Valparaíso → Recife (Brazil)
Start: Wednesday, February 18, 2026
Distance: ~4,800 nautical miles
Arrival: ~March 15, 2026
Highlights: Rounding Cape Horn
Leg 6: Recife → Lorient (France)
Start: Sunday, March 29, 2026
Distance: ~4,300 nautical miles
Arrival: ~April 17, 2026
