Charlie Dalin

Justin Chisholm’s guest on the latest episode of The Yacht Racing Podcast is the French solo offshore racing skipper Charlie Dalin.Dalin hit the headlines earlier this year after he claimed the line honours victory in the Vendee Globe 2020-21 singlehanded non-stop around-the-world race.Despite being first home Charlie was not the overall winner.The time allowance awarded to fellow Frenchman Yannick Bestaven for his part in the search and rescue operation to save PRB skipper Kevin Escoffier put Dalin down to second place in the overall rankings. Nevertheless, to lead the Vendee Globe fleet home at his first attempt at sailing’s toughest around-the-world race is an incredible achievement.During the interview Dalin shares his insight on what it is like to race around the world alone on a state-of-the-art foiling IMOCA 60. He shares the highs and the low points of his race and explains what it is like to race through the Southern Ocean – arguably the world’s most inhospitable environment – for the first time.We also find out about the extra pressure Dalin felt being amongst the leaders in the most tightly fought Vendee Globe race ever, and discover just how tough that foil bearing repair was to carry out – all alone at the bottom of the world.