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Photo courtesy of Alex Thomson Racing
Veteran British solo-sailor Alex Thomson has announced he won’t compete as a skipper in the 2024 Vendée Globe [https://vendeeglobe.org]. However, he isn’t ruling out returning to the race in 2028. Thomson has competed in the IMOCA circuit for 19 years, including five successive Vendée Globe’s with two podium finishes and numerous world records. His record has also been marked by more than its fair of disappointment and heartbreak due to equipment failures. In 2016 he was solidly in the lead off the Cape of Good Hope, but then lost his starboard foil after hitting an unidentified floating object. He still managed to finish second behind France’s Armel Le Cléac’h.
In the 2020 Vendée Globe he was forced to withdraw after just 19 days of racing because of damage to one of his two rudders.
“I have had the privilege to compete and race IMOCA 60s for almost 20 years. I love the sport, but it’s time for me to spend more time on land, with my young family. My wife Kate has single-handedly raised our children for the last 10 years whilst I have pursued my dream. Now I want to support Kate and allow her the same opportunity that she has given me. This doesn’t mean that I am retiring, just changing my role, from spending most of my time at sea, to spending more of it on land,” Thomson said…
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