After 74 days, 19 hours and 35 minutes at sea, British sailor Alex Thomson reached the finish line of the Vendée Globe on his boat HUGO BOSS at 7:37 UTC Friday 20th January 2017, and in doing so broke his own British record of 80 days for the fastest solo circumnavigation of the globe in a monohull. As well as becoming the fastest Brit to ever sail solo around the world, Thomson has matched Dame Ellen MacArthur’s second place finish which she achieved back in Read More
Archives for January 2017
Vendée Globe Race Update: Wednesday 18th January
With just 390 nautical miles left to the finish port of Les Sable d’Olonne and less than two days until the leading duo are expected to complete the solo, non-stop, around the world race, the Vendee Globe, British sailor Alex Thomson is in second place with just 40 nautical miles behind French rival Armel Le Cléac’h. With 98% of the race complete, Thomson is racing towards the finish against his French rival in the battle for first place, sailing at a speed Read More
Vendée Globe Race Update: Tuesday 17th January
With just 587 nautical miles of the Vendee Globe left and just 3 days until the leading duo are expected back in Les Sable d'Olonne, British sailor Alex Thomson is in second place with just 72 nautical miles behind French rival Armel Le Cléac’h. With 98% of the race complete, Thomson is headed back to the finish port of Les Sable d'Olonne, sailing at a speed of 16 knots. The leading duo, who will be duelling all the way to the finish, are approaching lighter Read More
Alex Thomson breaks 24 hour world distance record
British sailor Alex Thomson has beaten the world sailing record for the second time in the Vendee Globe, travelling 536.81 nautical miles in 24 hours. The previous speed record of 534.48 nautical miles was set by Francois Gabart in the 2012 Vendee Globe, Thomson has sailed an additional 2.33 nautical miles. The record has been confirmed by the Vendee Globe race organisation but has to be ratified by the world sailing council. Thomson’s previous speed record Read More
Vendée Globe Race Update: Friday 13th January
With this year’s edition of The Vendée Globe approaching its final days, British sailor Alex Thomson is in second place, 160 nautical miles behind French rival Armel Le Cléac’h. Alex has claimed back 54 miles overnight in difficult conditions for the leading two IMOCA’s in the North Atlantic. With 92% of the race complete, Alex is heading towards the Azores and sailing at a speed of 13 knots with 1972 nautical miles standing between him and the race Read More
Vendée Globe Race Update: Thursday 12th January
With this year’s edition of The Vendée Globe approaching its final days, British sailor Alex Thomson is in second place, 227 nautical miles behind French rival Armel Le Cléac’h. With 91% of the race complete, Thomson is heading towards the Azores and sailing at a speed of 20.5 knots with 2211 miles standing between him and the race finish at Le Sables d’Olonne. The Vendée Globe is a single-handed, non-stop, unassisted race around the Read More
Alex Thomson Breaks Another Record
Sunday 8th January– Yesterday at 17:12 UTC, British sailor Alex Thomson broke another race record yesterday in the solo, non-stop, around the world race, the Vendée Globe as he reached the equator from Cape Horn in 13d 5hrs 30mins. Thomson has beaten the previous race record set by Francois Garbart in the 2012-2013 edition to this milestone by 14hrs. Despite a damaged starboard foil Thomson has consistently been ranking second in the Vendée Globe, averaging Read More
Double Vendée Globe winner Michel Desjoyeaux bets on Britain Alex Thomson to win!
Today at 17:12 UTC British sailor Alex Thomson reached the Equator in the Vendée Globe in 62 days 05h 10min and just 16h 49min behind French rival Armel Le Cléac’h. With 87% of the race complete, Thomson crossed the last major milestone as he races towards the finish line in Les Sable d’Olonne, France, determined to continue to close the gap to the leader. The distance between Thomson and leader Le Cléac’h has closed as they have entered the Doldrums, an area Read More