South African skipper Kirsten Neuschäfer became the first woman to ever win the Golden Globe Race - a solo sailing race of 30 000 miles, dubbed a 'voyage for mad men'.
The Golden Globe Race is based on the Sunday Times Golden Globe Race which saw Sir Robin Knox-Johnston become the first person to sail the globe alone on his boat Suhaili without stopping in 1968. Race participants now have to use similar yachts and equipment that was available to Sir Robin during his sail, meaning that they have to sail without modern technology or the benefit of satellite-based navigation aids.
Neuschäfer was the only female competitor - the other 15 competitors were all men.
On 4 September 2022, the participants set off from Les Sables-d’Olonne, France with the aim of making it around the world via the five Great Capes before returning to the coastal town in the west of France.
By the time Neuschäfer crossed the line Thursday, only two other sailors were on course to complete the race without stopping. The South African completed the race with an official time of 233 days, 20 hours, 43 minutes and 47 seconds.
#GGR2022 Kirsten Neuschäfer (39) - "MINNEHAHA" officially became the first woman to win a round the world race by the three great capes, including solo & fully crewed races, non-stop or with stops, & the first South African sailor to win a round-the-world event! BRAVO pic.twitter.com/o2ZFajQSoX
— Golden Globe Race 2022 (@ggr2022) April 27, 2023
Not only did Neuschäfer win, but she also diverted from her course to rescue fellow competitor Tapio Lehtinen during the race.
Lehtinen’s boat sank leaving the Finnish skipper stranded for over 24 hours in the southern Indian Ocean. Neuschäfer was the first to reach Lehtinen and rescued her fellow competitor.
“We drank a rum together and then we sent him on his merry way .. No congratulations needed for the rescue, everyone would do the same for another sailor, thank you guys for coordinating it,” Neuschäfer told the race website.
Neuschäfer also described how her boat, Minnehaha had been her “companion” throughout the adventure.
“I talked to her a lot. I even got angry with her, but I love her very much,” the victor explained per Sail-World. “It’s a fast, elegant boat, on which I worked a lot for a year. I had the will to win as soon as I registered for the race and I did all my preparations accordingly.”
Neuschäfer also commented on being the only woman in the race, adding: “I wanted to win, not as a woman. I didn’t want to be in a separate category but to compete on equal terms with all the skippers.”
The mayor of Les Sables-d’Olonne, Yannick Moreau, expressed his amazement at Neuschäfer's win, stating: “The only woman at the start of the longest sporting event in the world came out on top and became a legend. It is truly a historic moment that we have just experienced in Les Sables-d’Olonne,” said Moreau.
“By her sporting feat, her courage, her heroism … Kirsten became a model and a world reference. In Les Sables d’Olonne, we are happy and proud to see her legend born.”
