Pip Hare dismasted in Vendée Globe: “I am so devastated”

British skipper Pip Hare has dismasted on Medallia while racing singlehanded in the South Indian Ocean during the Vendée Globe. Pip is safe and has constructed a jury rig.

Pip Hare, the only British based skipper in the Vendée Globe, has dismasted on Medallia while racing in the South Indian Ocean.

On Sunday, December 15 at 21:45 UTC, approximately 800 nautical miles south of Australia, her IMOCA Medallia dismasted while racing in 15th position in the Vendee Globe race.

Hare has managed to set a jury rig and is heading for land, the nearest point is Tasmania, around 700 miles east.

As Vendée Globe skippers must complete the course unassisted, this is now the end of Pip’s 2024 Vendée Globe.

Hare, who is uninjured, said from Medallia: “I’m roughly halfway along the longitude of Australia on day 35 of the race and this morning my boat Medallia took off on a wave and when it landed the mast broke into two pieces and fell down and it’s put an end to my second solo round the world race.

Pip Hare ‘so devastated’

“It all feels pretty raw right now. I am so devastated.

“This is four years of preparation and planning and four years of development, the boat and I were in really great shape, having a really good race and we were about halfway round the world. So, to dismast now is really brutal.”

Her team confirmed that Hare has patched together a jury rig to begin sailing towards safety.

Hare continues: “I’m about 700 miles from the closest piece of land and I’ve already managed to do a jury rig with one of the bits that I salvaged. I’ve got some sail up and I’m making way slowly towards the land. Security wise I’m absolutely fine, the boat’s fine and we are making our way to the shore.

“I’m just really devastated, it was the greatest edition of the Vendée Globe yet. It was a highlight of my career and for it to end in this way is really punishing.

“But a race of this nature that’s three months long, taking you to some of the world’s most extreme environments, these things happen and unfortunately, it’s happened to me this time.

“I just want to say a massive thank you to all my sponsors and supporters and my team for the hard work that they’ve put in over the last four years to get us to the start line of this race.”

Hare is bitterly disappointed in the ending of her second Vendée Globe. After fighting her way around the course in an older boat in 2020, for this race she had a newer design, which her team upgraded with larger foils and a refined bow section, and had set herself performance goals.

She had recently overtaken Romain Attanasio (Fortinet Best Western) around the longitude of Cape Leeuwin, moving up to 15th place. She had also overcome some minor structural damage, making repairs to a bulkhead.

Hare looks forward to 2025

In an emotional video from the disabled boat, Pip explained further:

“I’m absolutely fine, physically fine. And the boat’s pretty unscathed as well.

“I worked for about three hours to clear all the mess up, and managed to get a jury rig up, and we’re now sailing along – doing about 4 knots. I’ve got about 700 miles to the nearest point of land so I’ve got plenty of time to think about where I’m going!

“I don’t think right now I can unpack how I feel, it’s just a case of doing the practical things to look after me and the boat and making some progress towards the shore so we can sort this out.

“But I do just want to thank a massive thank you to everybody who has worked so hard over the last four years to make this happen.

“To our incredible sponsors, Medallia and Aspen. To all of our partners, our technical partners, our personal partners.

“Everyone’s who’s got a name inside the boat, everyone who’s help out, volunteered, came to fundraising events. Because we’ve all put so much in to making this race happen. And I’m so sorry that it’s ended this way.

“It’s not the end. It never is the end. And I hope that by the time I get to the shore we’ll have a really good plan about how to get Medallia sailing again and get back to Europe and then get back on the race track in 2025.

“But I want to thank you all for your incredible support and encouragement and for following the race this far.

“And to all the other competitors out there, stay safe, finish the race, and I’m really going to miss the other half of the race with you guys.”

Rigging damage

This is the first dismasting to occur during the 2024 Vendée Globe, which had been remarkable for its low rate of attrition during the first half of the solo non-stop around the world race. IMOCA rigs are one-design, as prescribed by the class rules.

Just two skippers have retired so far: Maxime Sorel on V&B Monbana – Mayenne, who retired after suffering problems to his main headboard car as well as an ankle injury. Second was Louis Burton on Bureau Vallée 2, who – having made structural repairs when he discovered cracking on his IMOCA – then suffered rigging damage which was irreparable, and put into Cape Town.

However, as the fleet contends with stronger conditions in southerly latitudes there has been an increased number of rigging problems accumulating.

Antoine Cornic (Human Immobilier, 32nd) has suffered damage to his mainsail track that required him to climb the rig. While sailing in 60 knots of wind and 8-9m seas, a gust caused his boat to broach, tearing off nearly 1m of mainsail track. He diverted towards the uninhabited Saint-Paul and Amsterdam Islands, north-northeast of the Kerguelen Islands, in order to make repairs.

Guirec Soudée (Freelance.com, 30th) also headed to the lee of the Kerguelen Islands to make rigging repairs after a broach.

Last placed skipper Szabolcs Weöres last night (Sunday 16 December) reported his port D2 diagonal shroud has broken on New Europe while sailing in winds gusting to over 40 knots.

‘Szabi’ is uninjured and the boat itself has no damage. He took a third reef in the mainsail and gybed, which has allowed him to keep his mast and rigging safe. When the damage was reported was 450 miles west of Cape Town and he is currently heading for South Africa.

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