single handed round the world yacht race 2023

At the heart of winter refit: where do we stand with the job list?

Unesco and the vendée globe: together for a better understanding of the ocean, discover the antarctic with polar journal.

One globe, one ocean

The Vendée Globe aims to use the media impact of the event to raise public awareness of ocean conservation throughout the round-the-world race. By sailing around the world, the Vendée Globe sailors are highlighting the fragility of our oceans faced with global warming. They are direct witnesses to the changes underway, particularly around Antarctica, a region that is under particular threat.

Soft mobility

The Vendée Globe adventure doesn't start in Les Sables d'Olonne! It starts from home, by using a low-carbon mode of transport to get to the race village. The organisers have set up a mobility committee to bring together all the public and private players involved and propose soft mobility solutions for getting to the village.

44 candidates

Fabrice Amedeo

Romain Attanasio

Éric Bellion

Yannick Bestaven

Jérémie Beyou

Arnaud Boissières

Louis Burton

Conrad Colman

Antoine Cornic

Manuel Cousin

Clarisse Crémer

Charlie Dalin

Samantha Davies

Violette Dorange

Benjamin Dutreux

Benjamin Ferré

Sam Goodchild

François Guiffant

James Harayda

Oliver Heer

Boris Herrmann

Isabelle Joschke

Jean Le Cam

Tanguy Le Turquais

Nicolas Lunven

Sébastien Marsset

Paul Meilhat

Justine Mettraux

Giancarlo Pedote

Yoann Richomme

Thomas Ruyant

Damien Seguin

Kojiro Shiraishi

Sébastien Simon

Maxime Sorel

Guirec Soudée

Nicolas Troussel

Denis Van Weynbergh

Szabolcs Weöres

What is the Vendée Globe?

The Vendée Globe is a single-handed, non-stop, non-assisted round-the-world sailing race that takes place every four years. It is contested on IMOCA monohulls, which are 18 metres long. The skippers set off from Les Sables-d'Olonne in Vendée and sail around 45,000 kilometres around the globe, rounding the three legendary capes (Good Hope, Leeuwin and finally Cape Horn) before returning to Les Sables d'Olonne. The race has acquired an international reputation, attracting skippers from all over the world. Beyond the competition, it is above all an incredible human adventure.

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• Digital Edition

Round the world race: 100ft trimarans set for solo race

• Helen Fretter
• July 9, 2021

The fastest offshore racing designs ever built, the foiling 100ft Ultim trimarans, will go head-to-head in a solo round the world race in 2023

Photo: Yvan Zedda

The Ultim class has announced the first single-handed race round the world for giant multihulls , the Solo Ultim World Tour. 

This will likely be the most challenging ocean sailing race ever held. The solo skippers will need to navigate a course as arduous as the Vendée Globe , but will be doing so in 100ft foiling trimarans with complex appendages capable of sailing at 45 knots , with the ever-present risk of a split-second capsize.

Six of the fastest ocean-racing designs in the world will be taking part in the new solo race round the world, with record-breaking sailors Armel Le Cléac’h , Charles Caudrelier and Thomas Coville among the solo skippers lining up.

The Gitana entry Maxi Edmond de Rothschild is one of the most highly optimised big trimarans, and will be coming back into the Ultim class. Photo: Eloi Stichelbaut / PolaRYSE / Gitana

Unsurprisingly, the race has been a long-time in coming to fruition. Now called the Solo Ultim World Tour, it will be organised by the hugely experienced event company OC Sport Pen Duick, in collaboration with the Class Ultim 32/23, to start in the autumn of 2023. The concept was first mooted around 15 years ago, just as the notoriously skittish Orma trimarans were in their final days. A calendar was drawn up for the embryonic Ultime class which included solo and crewed round the world races, building up to a solo around the world race set for December 2019, then called the Brest Oceans. 

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However, in the 2018 Route du Rhum – the transatlantic race with a reputation for being something of a demolition derby – four of the big trimarans suffered severe damage. Armel le Cléac’h’s Banque Populaire IV capsized and broke up mid-Atlantic, while the Maxi Edmond de Rothschild lost 10m of one float, Sodebo also suffered structural cracking to one float and Macif lost a foil and a rudder. 

History seemed to be repeating itself – in the 2002 Route du Rhum, only three of 18 multihulls had managed to complete the race, and the ensuing capsizes and dramatic rescues saw many sponsors leave the Orma fleet. It was clear that the Ultim class was nowhere near ready to race solo around the world.

Macif at the start of the 2019 Brest Atlantiques Race

However, the class changed tack. A multi-stage double-handed race looping around the Atlantic was held in 2019 instead – the Brest Atlantiques . Although several boats suffered damage – Macif swopping out a rudder in Rio, and Sodebo breaking off its starboard rudder after hitting a whale (an impact which caused so much damage that the aft section of the starboard float filled with water and later also broke away), three of the four made it around and there were no dramatic rescues.

Round the world race entries

Even more remarkably, new boats kept being launched. Banque Populaire commissioned a new Ultim for le Cléac’h, and although Francois Gabart’s previous sponsor Macif pulled out mid-build, his new Ultim – code-named M101 – was completed, and he secured new backing from French cosmetics group Kresk (now under the name SVR-Lazatigue ). 

Combined with a new Sodebo for Thomas Coville in 2019, and a healthy market for second-hand giant trimarans that are ripe for optimisation, the biggest, and most audacious ocean racing fleet in the world is now attracting entry numbers to rival that of the last one-design Volvo Ocean Race (seven in the last Volvo, six currently in the Solo Ultim World Tour).

Confirmed entries for the round the world race so far are: Banque Populaire XI , skippered by Armel Le Cléac’h; Maxi Edmond de Rothschild with Charles Caudrelier (which will come back into the Ultim class after being modified out of class rules for round the world record attempts); Thomas Coville’s Sodebo;  Francois Gabart on his new SVR-Lazartigue ; Actual , skippered by Yves Le Blevec, and a Brest Ultim Sailing entry, the former Actual , with the skipper still to be announced. 

These sailors are the absolute elite of ocean racing. Between the five confirmed skippers alone they include two Vendée Globe winners, two around the world solo record holders, two Volvo Ocean Race wins , at least two Jules Verne around the world crewed records and multiple further attempts.

The start and finish host city has not yet been decided, although discussions are underway with the City of Brest, which has shown keen interest in hosting the event since the creation of the project and hosted the Brest Atlantiques Race in 2019.

Sodebo was one of three latest generation Ultimes racing in the 2019 Fastnet. Photo: Kurt Arrigo / Rolex

The current around the world multihull solo record stands at 42d 16h, set by Gabart on his previous Macif in 2017 . The Solo Ultim World Tour is likely to take around 40-50 days, as they will not be setting off with an optimal forecast for record-breaking.

However, the biggest question will be whether they can make it around without race-ending foil damage. After the experiences of the Brest Atlantiques Race and 2019 Route du Rhum, all the teams have been innovating with ways of both avoiding collisions, and making their trimarans more robust in the event of hitting a UFO.

The new Banque Populaire has increased structures, sacrificing ultimate light weight for strength (see more on this in the August issue of Yachting World magazine, out now). Sodebo has been experimenting with appendage fittings designed to absorb impact, and all the big tri’s are trialling collision avoidance systems such as Oscar to try and identify objects in the water.

Charles Caudrelier, the co-skipper of the Maxi Edmond de Rothschild who will be taking on the solo race, said: “This solo round-the-world race in the Ultim is a dream I didn’t even dare to hope for in my career. I have always been very drawn to the Vendée Globe, but here, at the helm of the fastest boats on the planet and in flying mode, it is quite simply the ultimate challenge. 

“Leading such a boat alone on such a demanding global course is an extraordinary adventure that I am really proud to share with the Gitana Team and on the Maxi Edmond de Rothschild. I have been thinking about this world tour for two years, it is this goal that motivates me and keeps me moving forward every day.”

The newly launched Banque Populaire XI

Thomas Coville, skipper of Sodebo Ultim 3 , commented: “It is a privilege to be part of this group of sailors. With Sodebo, we have been thinking about this race since 2007 when we launched the construction of the first Sodebo Ultim trimaran.

“There were a lot of twists and turns in the creation of this race around the world. This race justifies 20 years of commitment and high-level sailing. This is the race that will consecrate the life of an athlete and a sailor.”

Armel Le Cléac’h, Banque Populaire skipper added: “Our boats are magical, and I am happy that we can share them with the public around great adventures. I can’t wait for it to start!”

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Solo Ultim round the world race set for 2023

The first ever single-handed race around the world in the giant Ultim multihulls will take place in 2023, 15 years after the vision was originally conceived. The race will be organised by OC Sport Pen Duick in collaboration with the Class Ultim 32/23 as well as the skippers and owners of the world’s   most highly advanced and exciting ocean-going race boats.

An incredible test of both man and machine awaits the skippers, in a race which will no doubt create the greatest heroes of ocean racing. The coming together of these 32-metre giants promises an extraordinary sporting feat that will be shared with people around the globe, guided by strong core values of surpassing oneself, humility, commitment, perseverance, and ambition. The adventure, talent and shared emotions will place the event at the heart of sports conversation and mark a significant moment in the history of ocean sailing.

The long-awaited summit

The concept of a solo, round the world tour for these multihulls was first envisioned more than 15 years ago. However, the idea that these marvels of ocean sailing and innovation could chase the winds around the globe has taken time to come to fruition – and for good reason.   The balance between technical development, reliability, and an ambitious programme is extremely complex. And so, the first edition, to be held at the end of 2023, is the fruit of many years of work to establish such a revolutionary event.

“We are very happy to see this project come to life. Together, we will be able to prepare for this round the world trip and give this magnificent race, which is both very human and highly technological, the breath it deserves. Jean-Bernard Le Boucher, newly appointed General Manager of the Ultim 32/23 Class will have, among other missions, that of supporting this great and beautiful challenge,” said Patricia Brochard, President of the Ultim 32/23 Class.

“It is with great joy that we are pleased to announce the confirmation of this great project, the organisation of the single-handed round the world race in a multihull. Everything has come together after many years of reflection and joint work to make this event a sporting, media and public success,” commented Edouard Coudurier, Chairman of Groupe Télégramme and Roland Tresca, Chairman of Pen Duick and Deputy CEO of Groupe Télégramme, owner of OC Sport Pen Duick.

A common adventure

The creation of a race of this magnitude – which marks the start of an exciting new chapter in ocean sailing – has been made possible thanks to the joint efforts of the boat owners and their skippers, the Class and OC Sport Pen Duick’s expertise in event management.

“More than 40 years after the first edition of the Route du Rhum, the announcement of the Ultim round-the-world solo race is reflective of the pioneering character and know-how of OC Sport Pen Duick. We are delighted to be able to now start working with the boat owners on the implementation of this superb project which will undoubtedly be a milestone in the history of sailing,” stated Hervé Favre, President of OC Sport Pen Duick and organizer of the Route du Rhum-Destination Guadeloupe and The Transat CIC.

While the choice of the start and finish host city has not yet been decided, discussions are underway with the City of Brest, which has shown keen interest in hosting the event since the creation of the project.

The level of competition and the calibre of the skipper’s is set to be exceptional, with formal commitments already confirmed by:

Actual (skipper, Yves Le Blevec)

Banque Populaire (skipper, Armel Le Cléac’h)

Brest Ultim Sailing (TBC skipper)

Maxi Edmond de Rothschild (skipper, Charles Caudrelier)

Sodebo (skipper, Thomas Coville)

SVR-Lazartigue,  a newcomer to the world of large trimarans (skipper, François Gabart) also supports this new project and its strong, unifying ambition.

Quotes from the Skippers / boat owners

Cyril Dardashti, Managing Director Gitana France:

“This race is part of the objectives we set for ourselves in 2017 by building – and then launching – the Maxi Edmond de Rothschild, the pioneer of this generation of flying giants. It took a little patience for the first edition to see the light of day, but today we can make this announcement! The arrival of the new maxi-trimarans was accompanied by a technological breakthrough and so it was important to allow time for this first event to live up to the magic of these boats. Beyond the incredible sporting performance that the sailors will accomplish on this inaugural round-the-world trip, it will be an extraordinary challenge to take up. We are delighted to be able to draw on the know-how of OC Sport Pen Duick as organiser for this great premiere.”

Charles Caudrelier, Skipper Maxi Edmond de Rothschild:

“This solo round-the-world race in the Ultim is a dream I didn’t even dare to hope for in my career. I have always been very drawn to the Vendée Globe, but here, at the helm of the fastest boats on the planet and in flying mode, it is quite simply the ultimate challenge. Leading such a boat alone on such a demanding global course is an extraordinary adventure that I am really proud to share with the Gitana Team and on the Maxi Edmond de Rothschild. I have been thinking about this world tour for 2 years, it is this goal that motivates me and keeps me moving forward every day.”

Thomas Coville, Skipper Sodebo Ultim 3:

“It is a privilege to be part of this group of sailors associated with exemplary partners. With Sodebo, we have been thinking about this race since 2007 when we launched the construction of the first Sodebo Ultime trimaran.

There were a lot of twists and turns in the creation of this race around the world. We had to be patient for the project to mature, which shows that we are all interdependent. On the day of the start, we will all be happy to have carried this idea.

This race justifies 20 years of commitment and high-level sailing. This is the race that will consecrate the life of an athlete and a sailor.”

Armel Le Cléac’h, Banque Populaire Skipper:

“I am delighted to see the Ultim’s programme structured around major sporting events that are very motivating, and which will also create superb sporting moments for all enthusiasts. Our boats are magical, and I am happy that we can share them with the public around great adventures. I can’t wait for it to start!”

Emmanuel Bachellerie, Managing Director and owner of Brest Ultim Sailing:

“These exceptional trimarans have deserved this solo race for a long time. They were thought out, designed, financed, built, and developed for it. Now that it is finally happening, the race will deliver its outcome after 40 to 50 days at sea – or more, or less… That is the magic of the sea and may it continue to remain so; that is to say, an exceptional adventure that we cannot predict.”

Samuel Tual, President Actual Leader Group:

“This round-the-world race is the culmination of our shared project with the Ultim Class. It will be an exceptional event. Exceptional for our skippers who will have to take up an unparalleled sporting and technical challenge aboard boats with performances like Formula 1. Exceptional also for all the public who will follow this race and the extraordinary adventure of talented sailors who are capable of extraordinary things. I am delighted that we have succeeded in creating this event which I hope will make ocean racing history.”

Yves Le Blévec, Skipper Actual Ultim 3:

“The confirmation of this single-handed round-the-world race for Ultim’s is very good news that we were all impatiently awaiting. Beyond the sporting challenge and the preparation that is required, I am proud to be able to be part of this with Actual Ultim 3, which promises to be very challenging. We are going to live an extraordinary adventure with exceptional sailors, on exceptional boats and with partners who have demonstrated the strength of their commitments.”

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See you in 2023 for the first Ultim single-handed round-the-world race

The Ultim single-handed round the world race has just been confirmed by the OC Sport Pen Duick organization in collaboration with the Ultim 32/23 class, and the least we can say is that there will be a lot of people on the starting line!

A single-handed round-the-world race in an Ultim

Waited for 15 years, we will have to wait two more years to see the giant ocean-going trimarans racing around the globe single-handed. For the first time in 2023, the Ultims will take the start of a solo round the world race. If the format is unprecedented, the circumnavigation is not, since several have already embarked on this feat, Thomas Coville on Sodebo or even François Gabart, current record holder, beaten in 2017 in 42 days .

The choice of the host city "departure and arrival" is not yet defined, but discussions are underway with the city of Brest , involved since the beginning in the project.

All the great Ultim skippers together

To date, 6 skippers/teams have already confirmed their participation, Francis Joyon on Idec Sport not being among them:

• Actual (skipper, Yves Le Blevec)

"The official announcement of this single-handed round-the-world race in an Ultim is very good news that we have all been waiting for with great impatience. Beyond the sporting challenge and the preparation that it will require, I am proud to be able to be part of this very strong line-up with Actual Ultim 3. It's an extraordinary adventure that we're going to experience with exceptional sailors, on exceptional boats and with partners who have demonstrated the strength of their commitment

• Banque Populaire (skipper, Armel Le Cléac'h)
• Brest Ultim Sailing (skipper TBC), newcomer in the world of ocean racing with the purchase of the ex-Actual
• Maxi Edmond de Rothschild (skipper, Charles Caudrelier) who is making his return to the Ultim 32/23 class

"This single-handed round the world race in Ultime is a dream that I never dared to hope for in my career. I've always been very attracted to the Vendée Globe , but here, at the helm of the fastest boats on the planet and in flying mode, it's quite simply the Ultime challenge. To lead such a boat single-handed on such a demanding planetary course is an extraordinary adventure that I'm really proud to share with the Gitana Team and on the Maxi Edmond de Rothschild . I've been thinking about this round the world race for two years now, and it's this goal that motivates me and keeps me going every day."

• Sodebo (skipper, Thomas Coville )
• SVR-Lazartigue, new sponsor of François Gabart .

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The Ultim single-handed round the world race - Green light for 2023!

Article published on 08/07/2021

By Emmanuel van Deth

published in n°SP16 aug. / sept.

For 15 years now, race organizers, skippers and sponsors have been dreaming of THE great universal race - a single-handed round-the-world race on board large ocean-going trimarans. This project is now becoming a reality - OC Sport Pen Duick announced on July 7 th , 2021 that this race will take place in 2023, in collaboration with the Ultim 32/23 Class. 

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It will have been necessary to wait until these incredible flying machines had proved to have sufficient reliability, and that the race schedule fits in with other races, along with many other factors... The announcement was apparently very well received by the skippers. Several have already formalized their commitment to enter:  Actual  (Yves Le Blevec),  Banque Populaire  (Armel Le Cléac'h),  Brest Ultim Sailing  (TBC),  Maxi Edmond de Rothschild  (Charles Caudrelier) and  Sodebo  (Thomas Coville). As for SVR-Lazartigue, a project led by François Gabart, they are willing in theory. The start and finish port should be the city of Brest, in Brittany, unless there is a major change of plans.

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Published on July 7th, 2021 | by Editor

2023 Solo Ultim World Tour confirmed

Published on July 7th, 2021 by Editor -->

The first ever single-handed race around the world in maxi multihulls will take place in 2023, organized by OC Sport Pen Duick in collaboration with the Class Ultim 32/23 as well as the skippers and owners of the world’s most highly advanced and exciting ocean-going race boats.

The concept of a solo, round the world tour for these 32-metre giants was first envisioned more than 15 years ago. However, the idea that these marvels of ocean sailing and innovation could chase the winds around the globe has taken time to come to fruition – and for good reason.

The balance between technical development, reliability, and an ambitious program is extremely complex. And so, the first edition, to be held at the end of 2023, is the fruit of many years of work to establish such a revolutionary event.

“We are very happy to see this project come to life,” noted Patricia Brochard, President of the Ultim 32/23 Class. “Together, we will be able to prepare for this round the world trip and give this magnificent race, which is both very human and highly technological, the breath it deserves.”

While the choice of the start and finish host city has not yet been decided, discussions are underway with the City of Brest, which has shown keen interest in hosting this event since the creation of the project. The level of competition and the calibre of the skipper’s is set to be exceptional, with formal commitments already confirmed by:

• Actual – skipper, Yves Le Blevec • Banque Populaire – skipper, Armel Le Cléac’h • Brest Ultim Sailing – skipper TBC • Maxi Edmond de Rothschild – skipper, Charles Caudrelier • Sodebo – skipper, Thomas Coville

“This solo round-the-world race in the Ultim is a dream I didn’t even dare to hope for in my career,” said Charles Caudrelier, Skipper Maxi Edmond de Rothschild. “I have always been very drawn to the Vendée Globe, but here, at the helm of the fastest boats on the planet and in flying mode, it is quite simply the ultimate challenge.

“Leading such a boat alone on such a demanding global course is an extraordinary adventure that I am really proud to share with the Gitana Team and on the Maxi Edmond de Rothschild. I have been thinking about this world tour for two years, it is this goal that motivates me and keeps me moving forward every day.”

Source: OC SPORT

Tags: Solo Ultim World Tour , Ultim Class

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Solo Act: Kirsten Neuschäfer Wins the Golden Globe Race

• By Theresa Nicholson
• September 11, 2023

When Kirsten Neuschäfer decided to compete in the 2022-23 Golden Globe Race, she searched for a fast, safe and stable boat. She studied designs with a good ballast-to-weight ratio, and sought out a hull and rig that could withstand a hard beat to windward. 

She found Minnehaha in Newfoundland and knew that the tough, sturdy Cape George 36 was the one. The quick cutter with a generous sail plan met all of the official requirements—a production boat with a full keel, less than 36 feet long, designed before 1988—and a few requirements she had set for herself. 

“I wanted a super-secure boat for the Southern Ocean, which was fast as well,” Neuschäfer says. “ Minnehaha suffers a little in light airs, but I knew I had a good chance of surviving. It was clear to me that the GGR was a bit of a race of attrition.”

Her instincts, along with detailed preparation, hard work and a bit of luck, served her well. Eight months after 16 skippers set out from the west coast of France to race solo 30,000 miles eastbound around a Southern Ocean course, Neuschäfer and Minnehaha caught one last whisper of wind off Les Sables d’Olonne, ghosted over the line, and sailed into history.

“I didn’t actually know that I’d won until the boats came out to meet me,” the South African sailor said of her historic finish. “I knew I was very close to Abhilash, so I was pushing hard. I knew we were very close.”

Indian skipper Abhilash Tomy battled the same light airs that Neuschäfer faced near the end of the race and arrived a day after, taking second place. Austrian Michael Guggenberger finished third, as the final skipper to complete the race in the racing class.

The Golden Globe Race is a nonstop, solo, unassisted round-the-world race with the start and finish line in Les Sables d’Olonne. Competitors are required to sail small boats using paper charts, VHF radio, sextants and celestial navigation. No modern weather-routing software is allowed, nor satellite communication, electronic instruments and autopilots. 

The route takes the sailors south through the Atlantic before heading east to Cape Town, South Africa, and around the Cape of Good Hope. After crossing the Indian Ocean and keeping Tasmania to port, sailors traverse the storm-plagued Southern Ocean and round Cape Horn. The ­final stretch leads north through the Atlantic and back to Les Sables d’Olonne.

Of the 16 skippers who started the 2022-23 race, 11 retired and two others made a single stop, moving them out of competition and into the Chichester Class. Neuschäfer’s victory made her one of only three people to win the race—and the first woman ever to win a solo circumnavigation yacht race.

“ Minnehaha suffers in light airs, but I knew I had a good chance of surviving. The GGR is a race of attrition.”

The race is based on the 1968-69 Sunday Times Golden Globe Race, won by Sir Robin Knox-Johnston aboard his 32-foot Bermudan ketch, Suhaili . Knox-Johnston was the only skipper to finish; in doing so, he became the first person to solo-circumnavigate the globe nonstop. Nine others retired, one was dismasted, and one committed suicide. The race was run once more in 2018, on the 50th anniversary of the original race. Eighteen sailors set out, and five ­finished. French sailor Jean-Luc Van Den Heede won the 2018 edition. 

More people have gone into space than have sailed singlehanded around the world. The small nature of the club means that the sailors, while competing, still look out for one another’s health and safety.

During the first dash south down the Atlantic in the 2022-23 race, Neuschäfer relayed to the race committee the VHF-radio mayday call of fellow sailor Guy DeBoer, who’d hit rocks near the Canary Islands. After a night spent grinding over the rocks, DeBoer abandoned his boat the next morning with the help of a local rescue team.

Two months later, 450 miles southeast of Port Elizabeth, South Africa, Tapio Lehtinen’s Gaia 36, Asteria , flooded after taking on water from astern, and sank in less than 20 minutes. Lehtinen had just enough time to activate his EPIRB, put on his survival suit, and swim to his drifting life raft. “I gave Asteria a last standing salute as she went down,” the Finnish skipper said. Neuschäfer, the closet sailor to his position, altered course and hand-steered through the night to assist in his rescue. 

“The emergency handheld GPS showed Tapio’s coordinates,” Neuschäfer says. “I followed the track, but it was very difficult to spot a small, orange life raft. I was able to reach him on the VHF, but the early morning light was behind him, and I couldn’t see him. He fired off a flare, and I approached him on a beam reach. He’d been waiting 24 hours and was ready. He threw me a line, and I caught it on the first try, pulled him in, tied the life raft to Minnehaha , and helped him aboard.”

The two sailors shared a glass of rum. An hour later, Neuschäfer managed Lehtinen’s dangerous transfer from Minnehaha to bulk carrier Darya Gayatri , a freighter that had responded to the emergency call as well. “When I saw he was on board, I was just relieved for him,” she says.

Neuschäfer’s own heavy-weather plan focused on mitigating risks and staying true to strategies she’d set. When a low-pressure system approached on her way south to Cape Horn, she set a warp off her stern and held on for 12 hours until the storm blew over. In strong winds north of the Falklands, she hove-to, knowing that beating to windward in the extreme conditions risked damage to her boat. 

By this time in her life, she was no stranger to adventure. Neuschäfer’s early years had led her from South Africa to a set of jobs in Europe, followed by a solo trans-Africa biking trip, where she pedaled the continent north to south in her 20s. Her later experience working for Skip Novak on his Pelagic Expeditions exposed her to the wind and weather systems of the Antarctic Peninsula, Patagonia and the Falklands, and built her familiarity with the Southern Ocean.

“You need a great deal of self-sufficiency on these expeditions,” she says. “You need to know which tools and spares to bring. You need to be able to do all kinds of troubleshooting, refit the boats, change out a propeller, or fix a rig under difficult weather conditions.”

Neuschäfer had also done several long-distance ­deliveries, including taking a Leopard catamaran from the South Africa factory to Australia, and completing a singlehanded delivery from Portugal to South Africa on what she calls a labor-intensive boat. “This, that and the next thing needed to be done, and I discovered that I can solve problems out at sea,” she says.

As she followed the 2018 Golden Globe Race, she liked its spirit of adventure. “There are a lot of reasons to decide not to do something,” she says. “Having succeeded and followed my heart in other decisions, I knew that the GGR was something I should do.”

Her plans were nearly derailed early when she left her boat in Newfoundland and flew to South Africa, and then COVID-19 restrictions kept her from returning to Canada. She was eventually able to get back to Newfoundland and sail to Prince Edward Island, where she spent a year preparing for the race. She fell in love with the people there and made lifelong friends. Several were present at the Golden Globe Race finish line in Les Sables d’Olonne.

For her part, Neuschäfer makes light of the fact that the race dubbed a “Voyage for Madmen” was won by a woman. “I entered as a sailor,” she says. “I competed as a sailor and won as a sailor. On the same token, it’s a male-dominated race. If what I did inspires someone, then good will come of it, and I’m happy for that.”

Neuschäfer clearly has inspired the sailing world. On the final night of her race, as Minnehaha made its way up Les Sables d’Olonne channel, thousands of supporters lined the harbor walls, cheering and waving flares. Neuschäfer’s smile lit up the night. When she reached the dock, a friend handed her a bottle of champagne, which she sprayed into the air. Dressed in her sailing bibs and bare feet, she stepped off her boat and onto dry land for the first time in 235 days, and hugged her mother. 

Theresa Nicholson is CW ’s senior editor.

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Global Solo Challenge 2023

Just two months since launching and one month since releasing the provisional Notice of Event, the Global Solo Challenge 2023 (GSC) has already inspired huge interest from sailors and sailing media around the world.

Key numbers so far:

• Over 110 serious entrant enquiries
• Enquiries have come from over 25 different nations
• 70% of enquirers already have a suitable yacht
• Nine sailors have already entered the Global Solo Challenge
• Over 30 articles about the event have been published online
• Over 35,000 unique visitors to the GSC website

Josh Hall, GSC Event Consultant, who has previously organised two round the world sailing events, is enthused about the reaction to the GSC: “For a round the world sailing event to garner this level of entry interest in just two months is astonishing and the level of experience that these enquirers have is exceptional. It proves that there is a large pent-up demand for such an event, which enables sailors to take on this grand adventure with their own yachts and within a sensible budget.”

Marina Coruña, A Coruña, Spain to host the GSC

The port hosting the departure and arrival of a round the world sailing event is a hugely important consideration. Accessibility, geographical location in respect of prevailing weather conditions, a history of nautical ventures, a world-class marina and local marine services along with a spirit that matches the event are key points.

Within hours of being contacted by GSC Organisers, Marina Coruña had agreed to host the GSC – a sure sign of a synergy, which will undoubtedly develop strongly for the Event and it’s entrants.

The support of Marina Coruña and it’s Director, experienced offshore racing sailor Roberto Bermudez de Castro (known as Chuny), is a key factor for the Global Solo Challenge. Chuny’s endorsement of the Event is warmly welcomed as with seven Volvo Ocean races on his CV he understands the challenges of round the world sailing as few others do.

An eclectic entry list quickly developing

GSC Organisers were sure that there was a demand for a single-handed, non-stop around the world event, which could be entered with existing, more “normal” yachts. They have been proved correct with serious entry enquiries from every corner of the world. The 9 entries already committed showcase the diversity of sailors and yachts that the GSC is attracting.

Organisers fully anticipate the entry list will keep growing at pace – many sailors have registered their intention to enter when the time is right for them to do so and new enquiries arrive daily.

A unique format to create a fair platform and spectator interest

A core value of the GSC is that having the fastest yacht and/or the largest budget is no guarantee of winning the event. With staggered group departures, based on an IRC handicap, the event will provide constant intrigue as the faster yachts pursue the slower yachts, which have started earlier. First boat home is the winner!

For entrants and event followers alike, this will provide a fascinating event to watch as it unfolds – the ultimate pursuit race.

This format also provides a natural grouping together and inter-competitor safety net as the fleet passes through the notorious Southern Ocean.

Global Solo Challenge – an evolving event

As the enquiries roll in, GSC Organisers are evolving the event entry parameters to cater for demand. The final number of departure groups will be defined when the full entry list completed, but in the spirit of the event, appropriate sailors and yachts could and should be allowed to enter.

For instance, after numerous enquiries from owners of Class40 type yachts, Organisers have created a Super-Zero Group, which will be the last group to depart. This is also, clearly, stirring some activity in the second-hand Class40 market.

For clarity, Organisers state that neither a Class40 measurement certificate nor Class40 membership is a GSC requirement – these boats will enter under their allocated IRC rating.

Similarly, owners and potential buyers of Open40 yachts, such as GSC entry #9 “Roaring Forty”, a Lutra BOC Open 40, are looking closely at the GSC as a platform to maximise the potential of these fantastic boats which struggle to fit into most other events.

The GSC is breathing new life into certain types and classes of older yachts.

Associating with the Royal Western Yacht Club – the spiritual home of solo sailing

Like many solo sailors, GSC Organisers have previously participated in the classic short-handed races of the RWYC in Plymouth. The RWYC is regarded as the home of solo and double-handed oceanic racing, so it is with great pride that the GSC associates with this highly respected Club.

The OSTAR 2021 and their new event, The Round Iceland Race 2023 can act as qualifier passages for GSC entrants and their double-handed Round Britain & Ireland Race 2022 could provide excellent training.

The GSC does not demand a race qualifier for their entries, but the rigours of these RWYC events can provide an excellent way for entrants to train and qualify at the same time.

Acting Rear Commodore Oceanic, Adrian Gray said “This is a great opportunity for both the RWYC and the GSC to work together in promoting the spirit of Corinthian, short-handed Oceanic Sailing – a discipline that the RWYC is proud to have created and continues to develop to this very day.”

GSC Event Director, Marco Nannini, commented “We are a new round the world event, but our principles mirror those of the RWYC and we are proud to associate. Like many, my first short-handed races were RWYC events. We are an event for ordinary sailors with ordinary boats who wish to do something extraordinary. We welcome the support and enthusiasm that the RWYC has shown to the GSC 2023 and look forward to a long-term relationship.”

An event that helps entries

GSC Organisers are experienced skippers themselves and fully recognise the commitment and issues that entering such an event entails.

Event Director, Marco Nannini commented: “Finishing is winning, to finish one must start well-prepared. We aim to help our entrants as much as we possibly can because we know very well what it takes to get to the start line of a major event.”

• A free crowd-funding platform to raise funds towards Entry Fees is available to each and every entrant
• Organisers are in discussions with insurers to hopefully provide yacht cover for entrants
• Entrants have access to the Organiser’s extensive experience and advice in preparing their yachts
• Numerous GSC discounts are being agreed with marine equipment suppliers
• Discussions are being held to provide emergency medical support during the Event
• Regular web conferences are planned with skippers covering the wide range of topics related to personal and yacht preparations

Organisers have received several enquiries regarding the course and whether there will be an “Ice Limit”. This has become standard practice and the Global Solo Challenge will indeed specify limitations as to how far south boats will be allowed. How this will be achieved is still a subject of internal debate.

Exact details will be available within the Sailing Instructions, closer to the event start, but there will be a fair and pragmatic approach to introducing a limitation to how far south a boat can safely sail, based on the seasonal information that will available for 2023.

Global Solo Challenge – the next two months

The Event achievements of the past two months are extremely positive for all involved. GSC Organisers will continue to work tirelessly on every element of the Event. Targets for the coming months are: expand the entry list, assist enquirers and entries with their questions, provide truly helpful aids to preparation, expand the equipment/service discount list for entries and continue to build the online profile and following of the Event.

Visit the event website at  globalsolochallenge.com , to receive more information please write to  [email protected] .

by Global Solo Challenge

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Global Solo Challenge: racing around the world in a 34ft boat

• Katy Stickland
• August 1, 2022

Dafydd Hughes was the second sailor to sign up for the Global Solo Challenge. He shares how he is preparing to race his S&S 34 around the world

Dafydd Hughes spent 15 months refitting his S&S 34 for the Global Solo Challenge. Credit: Dafydd Hughes Credit: Dafydd Hughes

The Global Solo Challenge is billed as a race like no other: a chance for small 34ft boats to fairly race against 55ft yachts.

Vessels will be grouped by performance characteristics before setting off in staggered departures over an 11 week period, with the fastest boats trying to catch the slower boats; the first yacht to cross the finish line wins.

Dafydd Hughes was the second skipper to pay the €7,500 entrance fee for the solo, unassisted, round the world yacht race , which starts from A Coruña in Spain in September 2023.

Dafydd Hughes learnt to sail at the age of 45, buying his first boat less than a week later. Credit: Leia Morrison

The 62-year-old has previously sailed as crew in the 2007-08 Clipper Round the World Race aboard Glasgow , skippered by Hannah Jenner.

He bought his Sparkman and Stephens 34, Bendigedig 18 months ago; it had been on the hard in a shed for a decade.

‘I basically just bought a hull and a deck. I have done the work myself so I know every inch of that boat. I’ve installed two watertight bulkheads. I moved the diesel tanks forward so they are above the keel.

The S&S 34 had been in a barn for 10 years before Dafydd started working on her. Credit: Dafydd Hughes

‘I did quite a bit of work on Class 40s, so I’ve applied some of the principles of that design to the S&S 34. So the galley is in the middle, and the nav desk is to one side. All the teak and brass has gone. Every pipe and wire is new. I have new sails, a new mast. All the deck fittings are new. I have sealed off the windows by taking the windows out and putting marine ply backed with GRP and epoxy. I also built a solid spray hood from GRP as well,’ explained Hughes, who is a Yachtmaster .

Finding the right boat for the Global Solo Challenge

Originally, he had planned to buy a Sigma 36 for the race, but a friend persuaded him to commit to the S&S 34.

There was a catch though. The smallest boat allowed in the Global Solo Challenge was 35ft. Organisers agreed to make an exception for Hughes due to the S&S 34’s offshore credentials.

The boat has certainly proved itself to be race ready. At Cork Week recently, Hughes and his crew won the Prince of Wales Cup in the Classics Class.

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Hughes admits he has little experience sailing singlehanded , especially in heavy weather , but is building up slowly. He is currently completing his 2,000 mile qualifier for the race (BENDIGEDIG 232037050, for those who want to track him).

‘I will be taking the boat out in a controlled manner to build up confidence in the boat and in myself. During those times, you have just got to sail conservatively. I am not concerned about solo sailing around the world; I’m quite happy in my own company, although I may have a different answer after I’ve done my qualifier, ‘ he said.

Celebrating after finishing the work on the hull and the inside of the boat. Credit: Dafydd Hughes

Hughes aims to complete the Global Solo Challenge in 200 days, and aims to sail an average speed of 5 knots, covering around 120 miles a day.

In the 2018 Golden Globe Race , winner Jean-Luc Van Den Heede finished the race in 211 days aboard his Rustler 36; Sir Robin Knox-Johnston finished the original 1968-69 Sunday Time Golden Globe Race in 313 days aboard his 32ft Bermudan ketch, Suhaili .

In search of speed

Hughes has added a bowsprit to Bendigedig and has a code zero and an A2 to race as fast as possible. He will also have weather routing, and has fitted a Simrad DD15 autopilot to the yacht.

He believes he is in with a chance of winning.

‘I will be leaving 11 weeks before the super zero class, so we’re going to be sailing in entirely different weather systems, and we should be in an entirely different hemisphere when they start. Because of the speed of the boat, I plan to stay on the shortest possible route on the rhum line and go as far south as I dare.’

Dafydd Hughes did most of the work on the S&S 34 himself. Credit: Leia Morrison

He is also researching the best storm tactics for the boat, favouring warps over drogues ; a method Australian circumnavigator Jon Sanders favoured when he completed numerous circumnavigations around the world in his S&S 34.

Hughes is ‘cautiously confident’ about sailing the Southern Ocean solo, believing ‘if you go to sea with an over confident mind then that is not a very good thing.’

All boats entered into the Global Solo Challenge must pass a minimum stability criteria, including adequate watertight bulkheads. As well as a 2,000 mile solo qualifying passage on the boat entered in the race, the 40 skippers who have entered must also have completed a World Sailing/ISAF Approved Offshore Personal Survival Training course.

Getting backing

Hughes started sailing when he was 45, buying his first boat – a Hunter Duet – just days after his first sailing experience.

His enthusiasm for sailing has also won him the support of Sir Robin.

The first sail after the refit work. The S&S 34 is one of the smallest boats taking part in the Global Solo Challenge. Credit: Dafydd Hughes

‘It is always with great delight, when I hear of a past Clipper Crew member taking on further, challenging adventures in life. I have seen many past crew and skippers go on to reach new goals. This time it is ex-crew member Dafydd Hughes, completely committed to the ultimate sailing test, a solo circumnavigation, with his entry, Bendigedig, an S&S 34 in the Global Solo Challenge 2023/24,’ wrote Sir Robin.

‘I first met Dafydd in 2007, when he was a crew member of Glasgow in the 07/08 edition of the Clipper Race. Not only did he complete the race, but he did so as a Round the World Watch Leader, helping to guide Glasgow to an overall podium position. Since completing Clipper 07/08 Dafydd has gained his RYA Yachtmaster, and climbed Mt Blanc, now he’s off round the world again.’

Dafydd Hughes is a Yachtmaster and was the second person to enter the Global Solo Challenge. Credit: Leia Morrison

Hughes estimates taking part in the Global Solo Challenge will cost in the region of £75,000, and he is hoping to secure £50,000 through sponsorship; so far he has pledges of £25,000.

Ultimately, Hughes is looking forward to the adventure of the Global Solo Challenge and the sole objective of sailing around the world solo in a 34ft boat.

‘The highlight of the race will be finishing, and going around Cape Horn solo; that is a huge milestone to conquer. That day I turn north will also be a pretty epic day,’ he noted.

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Global Solo Challenge 2023 inspiring global interest

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Global Solo Challenge: Sailor Dafydd Hughes' non-stop sea voyage

• Published 21 May 2022

A sailor is aiming to become only the second Welshman to go by sea single-handed and non-stop around the world.

Dafydd Hughes, 62, from Tal-y-bont, Ceredigion, has registered to take part in 2023's Global Solo Challenge - a round-the-world sailing race.

The event starts in A Coruña in Spain and sailors must travel east, passing between Antarctica and capes in South Africa, Australia and South America.

He said he expected the voyage to take him more than six months.

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Completing the circumnavigation of the globe would see him follow Alex Thomson, from Bangor, who became the fastest Briton to sail solo, non-stop and unassisted around the world in 2017.

Mr Thomson completed the journey in just under 75 days.

Boat completely stripped out

Mr Hughes's boat, named Bendigedig - which means wonderful or fantastic in Welsh - has only just returned to the water after 20 years on dry land.

He bought it two years ago and has been working to make it seaworthy since.

He said: "She's had a full refit. She was completely stripped out when I bought her and she's now been fully rewired, fully plumbed, new tanks, new masts, all the deck fittings are new, the running rigs are new, new sails - so she's basically a new boat."

The 34-ft (10m) vessel was ideal for the 26,000 nautical mile journey, Mr Hughes said.

He has previously sailed around the world, as part of Sir Robin Knox-Johnston's crew in 2007, but doing it solo will be a challenge on an entirely new level.

Biggest fear

"When I first read about the race, I filled in my entry form within an hour. I sent it off and then I thought 'Oh my word what have I done now?' But I haven't lost the commitment since that day," he added.

He said his biggest fear was a breaking wave on the side of the boat, with waves in the Southern Ocean reaching 60 or 70ft (20 to 23m), enough to roll the boat.

Bendigedig has been lowered into Aberaeron harbour and he will take it out to sea to test for just over two weeks it before taking on the Global Solo Challenge.

Mr Hughes's sister, Sian Campion, said he was always looking for a challenge and was fond of an "adrenaline rush", and "if he gets an idea in his mind he'll see it through until the end".

"He was keen on Formula 1 and had his own go-kart and went to races, he used to ride his bike or climb trees, he always had a craving for speed," she said.

'Can he do it? He can, definitely'

The Global Solo Challenge, which is a new event, will start in September 2023.

Entrants must head south from A Coruña and "leave the Antarctic region and all known ice… to starboard (on the right) and the three great capes to port (on the left) before making their way to the finish line".

The three capes are the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa, Cape Leeuwin in Australia and Cape Horn in South America.

Mr Hughes said only 180 people have ever sailed around the world solo, fewer than the 600 who have been to space.

He will not be allowed to be helped but will keep in touch with a shore team via satellite phone.

He will also get lots of support from members of Aberaeron Yacht Club.

Its secretary Julian Driver said: "It's 24 hours a day, non-stop, so very little sleep. And when you get down in the Southern Ocean you could have 60 to 70ft waves and winds of 50mph (80km/h).

"Can he do it? He can, definitely. If anybody can, Dafydd will!"

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This race is a nonstop sail around the world. Cassette tapes are allowed, but no GPS

Scott Neuman

South African sailor Kirsten Neuschafer, the only woman in the 2022 Golden Globe Race. All but three of her 15 competitors in the grueling months-long competition have been forced to drop out. Aida Valceanu/GGR/2022 hide caption

South African sailor Kirsten Neuschafer, the only woman in the 2022 Golden Globe Race. All but three of her 15 competitors in the grueling months-long competition have been forced to drop out.

Somewhere in the Southern Pacific Ocean, Kirsten Neuschafer is alone on her boat, Minnehaha, as she tries to outmaneuver the latest storm to cross her path as she approaches Cape Horn.

Instead of sailing directly for the tip of South America, she's spent the past day heading north in an effort to skirt the worst of the oncoming weather. The storm is threatening wind gusts up to 55 miles per hour and seas building to 25 feet.

Her plan, she explains over a scratchy satellite phone connection, is to get away from the eye of the storm. "The closer I get to the Horn," she says, "the more serious things become, the windier it becomes."

But there's no turning back. That's because Neuschafer is battling to win what is possibly the most challenging competition the sailing world has to offer — the Golden Globe Race. Since setting off from the coast of France in September, Neuschafer, the only woman competing, has left all rivals in her wake. Of the 16 entrants who departed five months ago, only four are still in the race, and for the moment at least, she's leading.

The race is a solo, nonstop, unassisted circumnavigation, a feat first accomplished in 1969, the same year that Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin set foot on the moon. Since then, more people have traveled to space than have done what Neuschafer is hoping to accomplish.

The race is a throwback in most every way. Unlike its more famous cousin, the Vendée Globe solo nonstop race with its purpose-built vessels made for speed, Golden Globe entrants sail low-tech boats that wouldn't look out of place in any coastal marina. And they do so without modern electronic aids — no laptops or electronic charts, radar or sophisticated weather routing. To find their position at sea, participants instead rely on navigating by the sun and stars and simple speed calculations.

Racers don't do it for the money. The prize of 5,000 pounds (about $6,045) is the same as it was in the 1960s and is not even enough to cover entry fees. The real lure is the challenge.

"The single-handed aspect was the one that drew me," Neuschafer, who is from South Africa, says of her decision to enter.

"I really like the aspect of sailing by celestial navigation, sailing old school," she says, adding that she's always wanted to know "what it would have been like back then when you didn't have all the modern technology at your fingertips."

Satellite phones are allowed, but only for communication with race officials and the occasional media interview. Each boat has collision-avoidance alarms and a GPS tracker, but entrants can't view their position data. There's a separate GPS for navigation, but it's sealed and only for emergencies. Its use can lead to disqualification. Entrants are permitted to use radios to communicate with each other and with passing ships. They're allowed to briefly anchor, but not get off the boat nor have anyone aboard. And no one is allowed to give them supplies or assistance.

The race motto, "Sailing like it's 1968," alludes to the fact that it's essentially a reboot of a competition first put on that year by the British Sunday Times newspaper. In it, nine sailors started, and only one, Britain's Robin Knox-Johnston , managed to complete the first-ever nonstop, solo circumnavigation, finishing in 312 days. Despite leading at one point, French sailor Bernard Moitessier elected to abandon the race in an effort, he said, to "save my soul." Yet another, British sailor Donald Crowhurst , died by suicide after apparently stepping off his boat.

Bringing the race back in 2018 for its 50th anniversary was the brainchild of Australian sailor and adventurer Don McIntyre, who describes the competition as "an absolute extreme mind game that entails total isolation, physical effort ... skill, experience and sheer guts."

"That sets it apart from everything," he says.

For sailors, it's the Mount Everest of the sea

Neuschafer, 40, is a veteran of the stormy waters she's presently sailing, having worked as a charter skipper in Patagonia, the Falkland Islands, South Georgia and Antarctica. Although she's been around Cape Horn before, this time is different, she says.

Previously she's been around "the Horn" when she could choose the conditions. But nonstop from the Pacific, with limited weather information, "I'd say, it's a notch up on anxiety. It's almost like ... trying to reach the peak of Everest," she says.

Finnish sailor Tapio Lehtinen's boat sank in November off the southern tip of Africa. He was rescued with the help of fellow racer Kirsten Neuschafer. Aida Valceanu/GGR2022 hide caption

Finnish sailor Tapio Lehtinen's boat sank in November off the southern tip of Africa. He was rescued with the help of fellow racer Kirsten Neuschafer.

Probably the most harrowing moment so far in this year's race came in November, when Neuschafer sailed 100 miles, staying at Minnehaha's helm through the night to rescue Finland's Tapio Lehtinen — one of the finishers in the 2018 race. She plucked him from a life raft some 24 hours after his boat, Asteria, sank in the southern Indian Ocean.

For the rescue, race officials broke protocol and allowed her to use GPS and gave her a time credit on the race. "I basically sailed throughout the night and by morning I got within range of him," she says.

Spotting Lehtinen's tiny life raft amid 10-foot waves was far from easy, Neuschafer says. "He could see ... my sail [but] I couldn't see him, not for the life of me." She later managed to transfer him to a freighter.

That incident reinforced for her how things could change at any moment. In the Golden Globe, she says, "a large proponent of it is luck."

The days can be serene, but also isolating

The drama of such days at sea is offset by others spent in relative peace. A typical day, if there is such a thing, starts just before sunrise, she says, "a good time to get the time signal on the radio so that I can synchronize my watches," which she needs for accurate celestial navigation.

"Then ... I'll have a cup of coffee and a bowl of cereal, and then I'll wait for the sun to be high enough that I can take a reasonable [sextant] sight." A walk around the deck to see if anything is amiss and perhaps a bit of reading — currently it's The Bookseller of Kabul by Norwegian journalist and author Asne Seierstad — before another sight at noon to check her position.

Or perhaps some music. It's all on cassette, since competitors aren't allowed a computer of any kind. As a result, she's listening to a lot of '80s artists, "good music that I ordinarily wouldn't listen to," she says.

The isolation was more difficult for American Elliott Smith, who at 27 was the youngest entrant in this year's race. He dropped out in Australia due to rigging failure.

Elliott Smith, a 27-year-old originally from Tampa, Fla. A rigging failure forced him to quit in Australia. Simon McDonnell/FBYC hide caption

Elliott Smith, a 27-year-old originally from Tampa, Fla. A rigging failure forced him to quit in Australia.

Reached in the Australian port city of Fremantle, the surfer-turned-sailor from Florida says he doesn't entirely rule out another try at the race in four years. But for now, he's put his boat, Second Wind, up for sale. He seems circumspect about the future.

"It was really obvious that I stopped enjoying the sailing at some point," he confides about the rigors of the race. "There were moments ... where I found myself never going outside unless I had to. I was like, 'I'm just staying in the cabin. I'm just reading. I'm miserable.' "

Smith says there were days when he would see an albatross, but was too mentally exhausted to appreciate the beauty of it. "I was like, 'This is so sad, you know?' Like, I've become complacent [about] something that most people would never even try, you know?"

Neuschafer, too, has had her share of frustrations. The latest was a broken spinnaker pole, which keeps her from setting twin forward sails on the 36-foot-long Minnehaha — her preferred setup for running downwind.

She's looking forward to finishing in early spring. But first, she still has to traverse the entire Atlantic Ocean from south to north.

"I'll get off and enjoy feeling the land beneath my feet." After that, she says, "the first thing I'd like to do is eat ice cream."

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Who is Kirsten Neuschäfer and Where is She Sailing?

By: Zeke Quezada, ASA women on the water

The Golden Globe Race is currently winding down, and the sailors are headed back to Les Sables-d’Olonne, France. In fact, they are a few days out from returning.  The race is fairly basic in nature as it began in  Les Sables-d’Olonne, France, on September 4th, 2022, and the contestants sail solo, non-stop, around the world, via the five Great Capes and return to Les Sables-d’Olonne.  The Golden Globe Race is a true test of endurance, skill, and courage.  The challenges faced by the sailors are what make this race so unique and revered. 

16 sailors began and currently, 3 are left.

One of them is Kirsten Neuschäfer.

Who is Kirsten Neuschäfer?

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Kirsten Neuschafer (@kirstenggr)

Kirsten has been a sailor since childhood, but turned it into a profession in 2006. From boat deliveries to crewing she built a diverse set of skills in the sailing arena.  Before the Golden Globe Race in 2018, Kirsten’s longest solo sailing trip was a delivery from Portugal to South Africa on an old and maintenance-intensive 32-foot ferro-cement sloop, using only a wind-vane for self-steering.

She joined Skip Novak’s Pelagic Expeditions and sailed the crew to South Georgia, the Antarctic Peninsula, Patagonia, and the Falklands, to capture the beauty of the Antarctic for National Geographic and the BBC. Kirsten has also embarked on other solo adventures, such as cycling from Europe back home to South Africa. Her current challenge is the Golden Globe Race 2022.

Kirsten Neuschäfer was awarded the Rod Stephens Seamanship Trophy for playing a pivotal role in the successful rescue of a fellow 2022 Golden Globe Race competitor, Tapio Lehtinen.

Find out more about Kirsten on her website: https://kirstenggr.com/

What is The Golden Globe Race

The Golden Globe Race is a solo, nonstop yacht race around the world with no assistance and without the use of modern technology. The original Golden Globe Race was the first race around the world solo without stops or any outside assistance. The race was organized by the Sunday Times newspaper in Great Britain and was held in 1968. The race was inspired by Sir Francis Chichester’s successful single-handed circumnavigation of the globe in his yacht Gipsy Moth IV.

A Few Facts About The Golden Globe Race:

• Entrants are limited to sailing similar yachts and equipment to what was available to Sir Robin in that first race.
• Competitors must sail in production boats between 32ft and 36ft overall (9.75 – 10.97m) designed prior to 1988 that have a full-length keel with a rudder attached to their trailing edge.
• The challenge is pure and very raw, placing adventure ahead of winning at all costs.
• Competitors will be navigating with sextant only.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Golden Globe Race (@goldengloberace)

The 1968 Golden Globe Race was won by Sir Robin Knox-Johnston, who completed the race in just over 312 days. The race has been reborn with a round-the-world race held in 2018, attempting to capture the nature of those early intrepid sailors. The 2018 event was a success, inspiring the current edition in September 2022.

The Golden Globe Race is one of the most challenging sailing races in the world. The sailors must navigate their way around the world without any outside assistance and without using modern technology such as GPS or satellite phones. They must rely on traditional navigation methods such as sextants and paper charts. The sailors must also deal with extreme weather conditions such as storms and high seas. They must be self-sufficient for months at a time, carrying all their food and supplies on board their yachts.

Track the race at their website: https://goldengloberace.com/

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Global Singlehanded Sailing Race Around the World and Fully Crewed Ocean Race Explained

Key points:

• The Global Solo Challenge is a singlehanded sailing race around the world
• The race started and will end in A Coruña, Spain
• The Ocean Globe Race is a fully crewed race around the world with stopovers in Cape Town, Auckland, and Punta del Este

The Global Solo Challenge has begun, marking the return of long-distance, offshore sailing adventures. The race, which started and will end in A Coruña, Spain, features a rolling, pursuit-style start and allows sailors to race any vessel that measures at least 32′ LOA. With 19 skippers already registered, including experienced sailors like Ronnie Simpson and Dafydd Hughes, the race promises to be exciting and full of action. In addition to the Global Solo Challenge, the Ocean Globe Race is also set to begin on September 10, featuring fully crewed teams racing aboard retro boats on an around-the-world course.

The summary of the linked article was generated with the assistance of artificial intelligence technology from OpenAI

sail-world.com • David Schmidt

Global Solo Challenge and Ocean Globe Race news

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Home > News

Clipper Race to visit Qingdao for 9th straight time

Eleven Clipper Race boats start their voyage to Qingdao, China's sailing capital, on March 14. [Photo/Qilu News]

The 2023-24 Clipper Round the World Yacht Race (Qingdao) will be held at the Qingdao Olympic Sailing Center in Shandong province from March 21 to 27. After a six-year hiatus, the Clipper Race will make its ninth stop in Qingdao.

The 2023-24 Clipper Round the World Yacht Race set sail from Portsmouth, England on Sept 3, 2023 (local time). This season has attracted 11 teams composed of more than 700 sailors from over 55 countries and regions. The race has an expected duration of 11 months, and participants will visit six continents, eight countries, and 14 ports, covering a total distance of 40,000 nautical miles.

Currently, the race is in the midst of its sixth leg, with the Chinese yacht  Qingdao  having already secured victory in one leg of the race. Based on the current sailing trajectory, the fleet is expected to arrive in Qingdao around March 21 and depart for Seattle, United States on March 27.

The race is now on its sixth leg, with Chinese yacht  Qingdao  having already secured victory in one leg. [Photo/Qilu News]

This year marks the third time that Qingdao, known as China's sailing capital, has sponsored a leg of the Clipper Race.

The Chinese yacht  Qingdao  clipper continues to serve as a global mobile promotional platform, showcasing Qingdao's status as a vibrant marine city. Ten ambassador sailors have been recruited again this season to represent Qingdao. Wang Ziqi and Bu Xuan are currently competing on board the Qingdao and are expected to arrive in Qingdao in one week.

The Clipper Round the World Yacht Race is the world's largest global sailing event, and Qingdao is the first Asian city to host the race.

As China's sailing capital, Qingdao is committed to both hosting high-end sailing events and cultivating and expanding independent brand events, striving to increase the quality and attractiveness of sailing events and become a new sailing hub.

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