Two men, two legs, and one extraordinary challenge. Lars Kyprian and Rüdiger Böhm are sailing a catamaran together from Gibraltar to Palermo. That’s a total distance of 2,020 nautical miles. What makes this challenge truly extraordinary is that Rüdiger lost both of his legs in an accident. You’ll find all the background information and the latest updates on the GP Challenge 2020 here.
With 2,070 kilometers covered across three countries in 29 days of sailing, the extraordinary goal was almost in sight, but the GP Challenge 2020 was brought to an abrupt and surprising end on Thursday, September 24, 2020, the 29th day.
Sadly, our intrepid sailors and their entire crew fell foul of the COVID-19 situation. Having already crossed into Italian waters, the latest pandemic rules meant that they weren’t allowed to set foot on the mainland to set up their next camp for the night. Travelers from France had been banned from entering Italy not long before they arrived. They had no choice but to sail back to France that same evening – and as if that wasn’t enough, they had to do it in a storm. What an achievement!
We regret that Lars and Rüdiger weren’t able to reach their original destination in Palermo, but we’re incredibly proud of what they’ve achieved over the past month. Despite numerous setbacks along the way, we’ve seen how they never lost their sense of humor or their passion for the project. They covered an unbelievable distance of 123 km on their best day and spent up to ten hours at a time on their little sport catamaran with a surface of just two meters by two meters. The two men and their support crew weathered storms, thunder and lightning, rain, choppy seas, days with no wind, damage to the boat, and much more besides for almost a month and never lost sight of their goal. They always believed: “We can do this!” It’s exactly this kind of self-belief that allows a person to grow and achieve things they never thought possible.
We’re looking forward to the sailors’ return, an exclusive report on the whole Challenge, a film about this incredible journey, and whatever comes next. Lars and Rüdiger couldn’t have provided a better demonstration of what can be achieved with courage and determination, and in the process they’ve inspired many other people to push their own limits. With this in mind, we’d like to wish them a safe journey home and a good recovery.
Know You Can.
It all began on August 28, 2020: Lars Kyprian and Rüdiger Böhm began their spectacular sailing adventure that was to take them from Gibraltar to Palermo. They have kept us updated with their daily diary entries – until coronavirus prematurely ended the GP Challenge 2020 just before their destination.
Lars Kyprian's and Rüdiger Böhm's entire team would like to thank you for your support!
© Michele Di Fede
The route from Gibraltar to Palermo is 2,020 nautical miles long.
Find out how Lars Kyprian and Rüdiger Böhm ended up creating the GP Challenge.
With the GP Challenge 2020, Lars Kyprian and Rüdiger Böhm are thinking outside the box and aiming to prove that the seemingly impossible can be achieved. AXA embraces these values and is thus supporting this ambitious sailing project as part of its "Know You Can" campaign, which is all about helping people who believe that they can do anything they set their mind to. Self-belief, determination, and staying power are vital to every success.
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