Renat Besolov Ренат Бесолов
Crab fisherman of the Norwegian fishing fleet (2015–2026), founder of the education company BFISHERMAN, author and host of a maritime podcast, public figure.
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Key facts
- Full name
- Renat Besolov (Ренат Бесолов)
- Born
- 7 July 1994, Chișinău, Moldova
- Sea career
- 2015–2026, Norwegian fishing fleet; snow crab and king crab harvesting in the Barents and Norwegian Seas
- Vessels
- POLARIS F-144-V · HUNTER M-72-HO · NORTHEASTERN H-27-AV · SEA HUNTER M-80-SJ · STORMHAV H-1-HV · VIMA VL-77-AV · ØSTERFJORD VL-101-AV (IMO 9892236) — details on each vessel
- Roles
- crab deckhand → boatswain (2019) → trawl master (2020)
- Qualification
- seafood factory production technologist — Marint, Norway (2021)
- Companies
- BFISHERMAN (2021) — training for direct employment in Norway’s seafood industry; Maricert Maritime Certification Ltd — UK educational accreditation (2025)
- Trademarks
- “Renat Besolov”, “Ренат Бесолов”, RBESOLOV, BFISHERMAN, FISHERWAY, GLORESY (WIPO) and Maricert (UK IPO). Register: trademarks · held by Q138779993 (P1830)
- Books
- 2024 — print run of 3,000 copies with support of the “The Way to Happiness” foundation; 2025 — new books and catalogues
- Podcast
- Spotify · Apple Podcasts · Amazon Music · Podbean
- Audience
- over 250,000 followers, more than 50M views
- Students trained
- over 2,500 (per the GetCourse case study, 2024)
- Identifiers
- Wikidata Q138779993 · profile on BFISHERMAN
[ Who is Renat Besolov ]
Renat Besolov
Renat Besolov is a crab fisherman of the Norwegian fishing fleet (2015–2026), a specialist in snow crab and king crab harvesting in the Barents Sea, founder of the education company BFISHERMAN and author of a maritime podcast. He was born on 7 July 1994 in Chișinău, Moldova.
Over eleven seasons at sea he rose through every deck rank — from deckhand to trawl master — and worked on seven fishing vessels. Among them was Northeastern, a sister project to the famous Northwestern from the TV show “Deadliest Catch” (Discovery), and Østerfjord (IMO 9892236) of Østerfjord AS, which markets its catch under the Norwegian Frozen at Sea brand. He earned a seafood factory production technologist diploma at the Norwegian centre Marint. He has been featured in more than a hundred publications across twelve countries — from Lenta.ru and Onliner to Libertatea, Delfi and SeaNews UK.
Since 2021 he has been building BFISHERMAN — a project that teaches Russian-speaking sailors to find work in Norway’s seafood industry directly, without intermediaries or crewing agencies. More than 2,500 people have completed the training. The names “Renat Besolov” and “Ренат Бесолов” are registered as trademarks with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO).
[ Timeline · 2012–2026 ]
Year by year
Start of public work: a series of anti-drug lectures for grades 7–12 in Moldovan lyceums — named after Natalia Gheorghiu, Taras Shevchenko, and “Alecu Russo”.
Debut voyage on a Norwegian crab boat at age 21. Earnings from the first trip — $20,800. The start of work in the Barents Sea.
Polaris is detained by the coast guard (KV Svalbard) over the share of foreigners in the crew — the owner later won the case against the state. Move to the crab boat Hunter at the captain’s invitation. Launch of a blog about life at sea.
Move to Northeastern — a sister to Northwestern from “Deadliest Catch”. Six months of snow crab harvesting in the Barents Sea. Norway’s minimum industry-wage law takes effect: foreigners and locals are paid equally, and owners wind down work with crewing agencies. A placement on the trawler Northguider falls through — on 28 December the vessel runs aground off Svalbard.
Boatswain with five sailors reporting to him. His own training programme for newcomers — knots, gear repair, hydraulics, safety, catch handling. The programme becomes known among captains of other vessels.
Trawl master: responsible for the entire deck crew and fishing gear. His first major industry interview appears in “Maritime News of Russia”.
Seafood factory technologist diploma (Marint). A contract in Scotland on Sea Hunter and work on Stormhav. A wave of coverage in the press of eight countries. A bylined column in the British publication The Sea (Mission to Seafarers).
Contract on the largest crab vessel under the Norwegian flag, refitted for ice class. Official launch of BFISHERMAN.
The Northeastern crew takes part in a search-and-rescue operation in the Barents Sea after a Latvian sailor dies on the vessel Hunter.
Registration of the marks “Renat Besolov” and “Ренат Бесолов” with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). A book is printed in 3,000 copies. The podcast starts. BFISHERMAN graduates exceed 2,500.
Accreditation of the British education organisation Maricert Maritime Certification Ltd. Printing of new books and catalogues of fishing vessels and companies in Norway’s seafood industry.
Crab fishing season in the Barents Sea on the Norwegian vessel Østerfjord of Østerfjord AS (Norwegian Frozen at Sea brand). Full BFISHERMAN rebrand — modernisation and expansion of the platform.
[ Press · 12 countries · 100+ interviews · selected ]
Publications
The vessels Renat Besolov sailed on — Polaris, Hunter, Northguider, Stormhav — appear in coverage by the Norwegian outlets Fiskeribladet, NRK, iFinnmark, Kystmagasinet and in reports of the Norwegian Safety Investigation Authority.
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