Knox-Johnston Swimming – Half a Century!

April 22, 2019

      Knox-Johnston Swimming – Half a Century!
      April 22 marked the 50th anniversary of the day Sir Robin Knox-Johnston returned to Falmouth on the Suhaili yacht, having spent one in the ocean for almost ten and a half months. It was the first ever single non-stop round-the-world sailing.

Nine sailors then went to the Golden Globe race, established by the Sunday Times newspaper. Nine. Only Knox-Johnston was able to complete it safely. He traveled almost 30 thousand miles in 312 days on a small 32-foot yacht Suhaili, and his sailing remains one of the most significant achievements in the history of sailing.

“The night of April 21, 1969 was hectic for me. I walked in the direction of Cornwall, trying to reach him at dawn on April 22, but my voyage was seriously complicated by a couple of hundreds of French fishing boats“ dancing ”in front of me. Half of Brittany seemed , went to sea to the coast of Cornwall.

In the past few days I was very busy with the fact that boats full of journalists began to appear from all directions, and from them they demanded comments: what a great contrast to the solitude of the previous 310 days. At times I began to wonder: should I turn back and slip away from them? After ten and a half months I became a “creature of the sea” and did not feel the need for the company of other people.
…
All I wanted was a cigarette (my stock ran out 40 days ago), a pint of bitter beer, a steak, (I lived on the cans for the whole race and wanted something to chew on normal) and a bath – strictly in that order. "

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