Charlie Enright

“All members of 11th Hour Racing Team are committed to being advocates for the ocean and lead by example in all aspects of our campaign, keeping the health of our oceans at the forefront of our decision-making process while promoting positive, systemic change.”

Charlie Enright (USA) is 38 years old and currently lives in Rhode Island in the United States with his wife Meris and two young children, Thomas and Maggie. Charlie is Skipper of 11th Hour Racing Team, the first American team to ever win The Ocean Race.

Born on September 10, 1984 and raised in Bristol, Rhode Island, he was destined to sail from a young age after his grandfather – a boatbuilder – introduced him to the sport. Charlie went to Brown University and has a degree in Business and Economics.

Prior to his college graduation in 2008, Charlie had his first taste of offshore sailing in 2007 when he joined the crew of the TP52 Morning Light to take part in the 44th Transpac Yacht Race, where he first met fellow team co-founder Mark Towill (now 11th Hour Racing Team CEO). The team’s participation was filmed and chronicled in the documentary released by Walt Disney Pictures ‘Morning Light’ later that year, providing Enright his first moment in the sailing spotlight.

Together with Mark, Charlie entered The Ocean Race 2014-15 with Team Alvimedica, leading the campaign as skipper with the youngest overall crew in the race. The team won the final leg into Gothenburg, Sweden to tie Spanish-entry MAPFRE for fourth place in the overall standings.

Two years later, they entered the Volvo Ocean Race 2017-18 again, this time as Skipper with Vestas 11th Hour Racing. The team won the race’s opening leg into Lisbon before missing some legs due to a broken mast in the Southern Ocean, resulting in a fifth-place finish overall.

In 2022-23, he returned once again for a third shot at the elusive Ocean Race Trophy and this time it was meant to be. The win had been over 4 years in the making for this team, over 10 years in the making for 11th Hour Racing, and a lifetime in the making for Mark and Charlie. On June 29, 2023, 11th Hour Racing Team became the first American team to win The Ocean Race in its 50-year history.

The team’s goal of winning The Ocean Race came with a mission to educate fans and followers along the way and challenge them to do their part in regards to ocean health and environmental issues.

Sailing highlights include:

2022-23: The Ocean Race – 11th Hour Racing Team
2021: Transat Jacques Vabre – 11th Hour Racing Team
2021: The Ocean Race Europe – 11th Hour Racing Team
2019: Transat Jacques Vabre – 11th Hour Racing Team
2017-18: Volvo Ocean Race – Vestas 11th Hour Racing
2014-15: Volvo Ocean Race – Team Alvimedica

THE OCEAN RACE EXPERIENCE:

2014-15 Team Alvimedica

2017-18 Vestas 11th Hour Racing

WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE WAY TO CONNECT WITH THE OCEAN?

Sail across it.

IF YOU WERE A MARINE ANIMAL WHAT WOULD YOU BE?

Albatross – I think flying is cool, they go where no one else goes, and they are wise.

SHARE A FUN FACT ABOUT YOU AND SAILING:

My grandfather was a boat builder. I started sailing Optimists when I was 5 and continued on through high school and college. My greatest sailing accomplishment so far is completing the double-handed Transat Jacques Vabre.