On January 2, he will set off from the southern tip of the African continent towards Brazil for the 17th edition of the Cape2Rio, some 3,700 nautical miles (6,600 km) with a crew, for the longest sailing competition in the southern hemisphere. .

Standing on the quay in a white polo shirt, next to his ten-meter sailboat dubbed Alexforbes ArchAngel, the 30-year-old skipper believes he has already scored a victory by reaching the start line.

"It will open the eyes of young people," he told AFP, hoping to inspire a new generation of black sailors.

Afterwards, "the objective is to finish the race" and even if he has no doubts about the potential of his boat, winning would be an incredible bonus.

About fifteen ships are registered, most monohulls.

The record for this crossing, set during the previous edition in 2020, is seven days and twenty hours.

Sibusizo Sizatu in training on the Archangel on November 13, 2022 to prepare for the Cape2Rio race © RODGER BOSCH / AFP

Today at the head of a crew of four men and one woman, all South Africans, Sibusiso Sizatu initially dreamed of being a professional footballer.

Originally from a rural corner of the Eastern Cape, the region of origin of Nelson Mandela, he settled at the age of nine with his family in a township in Cape Town.

In his childhood mind, sailing was a pastime of the wealthy, usually retired, and white.

Far from the everyday life of his poor neighborhood.

Peaceful on the water

The taste of the sea came to him a little by chance.

An association has intervened in his school with the mission of teaching children to navigate, who often do not get to know the water until late or even never, and are regularly victims of drowning.

His first outing was not a success.

Seasickness and stomach jitters.

He jumps into the water and swims back to shore.

Sibusizo Sizatu in training on the Archangel on November 13, 2022 to prepare for the Cape2Rio race © RODGER BOSCH / AFP

It is finally the appetite for victory that convinces him, after having won a race in which a friend had embarked him.

Sibusiso Sizatu then realizes that it is not just a question of "playing on the water", that steering a boat is a serious sport.

He proves to be gifted and begins to train.

Of course, he doesn't always have the money to travel to events, or even pay for food when traveling.

And until he was 20, he also had no identity papers, which deprived him of any chance of participating in competitions abroad.

But he begins to feel in his element: "It's peaceful when you're on the water, you forget everything else," he describes.

The world of sailing opens up new horizons for him, he now aims to push the boundaries of the discipline: "I would like to see more diversity (...) There are still people who find it difficult to accept us in this sport, racism remains present".

He is the first student of the Royal Cape Yacht Club to embark on the Cape2Rio.

The association was created ten years ago to help young people from disadvantaged backgrounds to establish themselves in this universe.

Sibusizo Sizatu and his crew in training on the Archangel on November 13, 2022 to prepare for the Cape2Rio race © RODGER BOSCH / AFP

His crew, between 21 and 30 years old, is made up of enthusiasts who have the same background as him.

Only one has already participated in a transatlantic.

The sponsors did not immediately jostle but they held on.

"It's going to be a great springboard for us" this adventure, already anticipates the young sailor.

© 2022 AFP