Torben Grael

Torben Schmidt Grael (born 22 July 1960) is one of the most well known Brazilian sailors, renowned in international competitions. A descendant of Danes, he was taken sailing by his grandfather at the age of five years on the sailboat Aileen, of the 6 Metre class, which was the boat used by the silver medal-winning 1912 Summer Olympics Danish sailing team. Once he moved to Niterói, he started sailing with his brother, Lars Grael, also an Olympic medal winner, on the Bay of Guanabara. Another brother, Axel Grael, is the current mayor of Niterói. He is father of Olympic champion Martine Grael and sailor Marco Grael. Nicknamed Turbine for his fame in conducting sailboats, he collected five Olympic medals, four of them in the Star class.

Sailing Career

Olympic Sailing He is the Brazilian with the highest number of Olympic medals, and holds the highest number of Olympic medals in sailing together with Ben Ainslie and Robert Scheidt with five, followed by Paul Elvstrøm with four. He also placed first place in many World, South American and Brazilian championships in several categories. His crew is usually Marcelo Ferreira.

Year Event Venue Class Result 2004 XXVIII Olympic Games Athens, Greece Star 1st 2000 XXVII Olympic Games Sydney, Australia Star 3rd 1996 XXVI Olympic Games Atlanta, United States Star 1st 1992 XXV Olympic Games Barcelona, Spain Star 11th 1988 XXIV Olympic Games Seoul, South Korea Star 3rd 1984 XXIII Olympic Games Los Angeles, U.S. Soling 2nd

World Championships Year Event Class Result 2024 12mR World Championship 12 Metre Grand Prix 1 2014 Star World Championship Star Open 9 2012 Farr 40 World Championship Farr 40 Open 2 2010 Star World Championship Star Men 3 2007 ISAF Sailing World Championships Star Men 13 2006 Star World Championship Star Men 17 2005 Star World Championship Star Men 2 2004 Star World Championship Star Men 15 2003 ISAF Sailing World Championships Star Men 32 2002 Star World Championship Star Men 2 2001 Star World Championship Star Men 4 2000 Star World Championship Star Men 18 1999 Star World Championship Star Men 12 1998 Star World Championship Star Men 2 1997 Mumm 36 World Championship Mumm 36 Open 7 1996 Mumm 36 World Championship Mumm 36 Open 5 1996 Star World Championship Star Men 3 1995 Star World Championship Star Men 2 1994 Star World Championship Star Men 3 1993 Star World Championship Star Open 5 1991 One Ton Cup One Ton 2 1991 3/4 Ton Cup Ton 3 1991 Star World Championship Star Open 2 1990 Star World Championship Star Open 1 1989 Star World Championship Star Open 18 1989 Open Snipe World Championship Snipe Open 2 1988 Star World Championship Star Open 5 1987 Open Snipe World Championship Snipe Open 1 1985 Soling World Championship Soling Open 2 1983 Open Snipe World Championship Snipe Open 1 1983 Soling World Championship Soling Open 8 1981 Open Snipe World Championship Snipe Open 3 1981 Finn World Championship (Gold Cup) Finn Open 32 1978 Youth Snipe World Championship Snipe Open 1

Other Dinghy Events Year Event Venue Class Result 1980 Sailing Olympic Week Cork, Ireland Soling 1st 1981 North-American Championship Sarnia, Ontario, Canada Soling 1st 1983 IX Pan American Games Caracas, Venezuela Soling 1st 1984 Sailing Olympic Week Sanremo, Italy Soling 1st Mediterranean Championship Sanremo, Italy Soling 1st 1987 X Pan American Games Indianapolis, Indiana, U.S. Soling 3rd 1989 European Championship Travemünde, Lübeck, SH, Germany Star 1st 1990 European Championship Lake Balaton, Hungary Star 1st Sailing Olympic Week Kiel, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany Star 1st 1991 European Championship Palermo, Italy Star 1st Sources:

Offshore/Oceanic Sailing He was skipper of Brasil 1 in the 2005–06 Volvo Ocean Race, the first 100% Brazilian outfit to enter the competition, which finished third overall. He would win the next Ocean Race, but this time as the skipper of the Swedish team Ericsson 4 (he won the race with two legs to spare). In October 2008 the yacht Ericsson 4 officially travelled 596.6 nautical miles in 24 hours, establishing a 24-hour monohull record. Skipper Torben Grael and his crew made the record on the first leg of the 2008–2009 Volvo Ocean Race. They sailed Ericsson 4 hard as a strong cold front hit the fleet, bringing winds approaching 40 knots, and propelling the yacht at an average speed of 24.8 knots.

America Cup He has sailed in several America's Cup races, including the winning campaign in Louis Vuitton Cup in 2000 and the 2007 event as tactician aboard Luna Rossa Challenge