On Wednesday afternoon, the Frenchman crossed the gate line just off Rubicón Marina. Light winds had recently reduced Guillou’s daily progress to a daily average of 116 nautical miles. Nevertheless, he maintained his lead. Around ten hours later, Pat Lawless crossed the gate in second place aboard ‘Silvermines Hydro’. The rest of the field is expected to reach the mark in the coming days.
The chasing pack is closing in
Things are looking good for the chasing pack at the moment. Stronger northerly winds are forecast for the next few hours. The Etmale boats at the back of the field are according to the tracker between 130 and 160 nautical miles. Guido Cantini even put the figure at 163 nautical miles recently. The field is closing in again.
Things are looking tougher for the bottom two. Selim Yalçın on ‘Help Disabled Children’ from Turkey and Pär Nyman on ‘Lazy Otter’ were still well behind the main group at the last check. They are not expected to pass the gate until next week. If the wind then dies down as expected, they could lose contact with the main group.
A sextant instead of GPS: What makes the Golden Globe Race so special
The 2026 Golden Globe Race is the fourth edition of a race that dates back to the Sunday Times Golden Globe Race of 1968–69. 16 sailors set off from Les Sables-d’Olonne on 6 September.
At the race’s inaugural event, Sir Robin Knox-Johnston became the first person to complete a single-handed, non-stop circumnavigation of the globe. Bernard Moitessier was on course for victory, but turned off course shortly before the finish and sailed on to Tahiti. At this year’s start, Knox-Johnston was present in person at Les Sables-d’Olonne and offered words of encouragement to each skipper individually.
The race covers around 30,000 nautical miles, sailing eastwards round the world and back to Les Sables-d’Olonne, without any stops and without external assistance. The race is sailed on production yachts of traditional design.
What makes it special is the strict ban on everything that constitutes modern navigation. Sextants, compasses and paper nautical charts are permitted. GPS, computers and electronic nautical charts are not. Radio communications are also strictly limited.
Tracker and Live Window: How to follow the race
According to the organisers, tens of thousands are watching the race online. The Official live tracker for the Golden Globe Race shows not only the fleet’s current positions, but also historical routes. It includes the routes taken by Knox-Johnston and Moitessier in 1968/69, as well as those of the subsequent winners, Jean-Luc Van Den Heede and Kirsten Neuschäfer.
Book recommendation: All right, K. Kirsten Neuschäfer talks about her victory in the 2022/23 Golden Globe Race and the rescue of Tapio Lehtinen in the Indian Ocean.
New in this issue is the GGR Live Window. Seven skippers transmit images from on board in rotating two- to three-hour slots, supplemented by selected boat data. Nothing changes on board as a result: the skippers receive no information, cannot access weather data and have no idea what is happening outside their boat. The system only transmits outwards. For the sailors, it’s still 1968. For the spectators, it’s 2026.
Fabian Boerger
Editor News & Panorama
