• Sixteen skippers begin a seven-to-eight-month mind game of complete isolation and grueling conditions on this historic fourth edition of the McIntyre GGR, a solo circumnavigation after four years of preparation and a spectacular community send-off.
• Sir Robin Knox-Johnston gives each sailor a final handshake as maritime history and family farewells take centre stage.
• Damien Guillou leads at 12:00 UTC on Tuesday as Biscay headwinds, repairs and a looming high-pressure system test the fleet.
• Organisers report growing interest and more than 40,000 start-day website visitors, with daily tracker briefings and a GGR Window Live YouTube channel bringing the adventure ashore.

LES SABLES-D’OLONNE, FRANCE — 8 SEPTEMBER 2026. The celebrations are over; the ocean has taken charge. Sixteen sailors departed on Sunday, 6 September, for the 2026 McIntyre Golden Globe Race, cheered through the Les Sables d’Olonne harbour channel by thousands of supporters. Ahead lies a circumnavigation in old fashion boats demanding traditional seamanship, physical endurance, psychological fortitude and the ability to keep going through months alone at sea. Some commentators now believe this completely unique challenge and fiercely human story is tougher than all other around the world yacht races. One thing is certain – this is a rae of Attrition borne of the extreme nature of the challenge. 

THE RACE AT A GLANCE
Start/finish: Les Sables-d’Olonne, France; start 6 Septembre 2026.
Distance and duration: Approximately 30,000 nautical miles; seven to eight months.
Course: Around the world via the Cape of Good Hope, Cape Leeuwin and Cape Horn.
Format: Solo, non-stop, truly unassisted, using traditional navigation rather than GPS or electronic routing.

Four years of preparation, one final handshake

The final fortnight mixed safety inspections, briefings and last-minute jobs with celebrations and difficult goodbyes. At the Captains’ Dinner, Sir Robin Knox-Johnston offered encouragement from an unrivalled perspective: he was the only finisher of the original 1968–69 Sunday Times Golden Globe, aboard Suhaili.

This edition also remembers Donald Crowhurst, whose false position reports and tragic disappearance in 1969 remain part of the race’s complex human history. Members of his family travelled to Les Sables-d’Olonne, where his son Simon Crowhurst presented the official commemorative coin to the entrants.

Saturday’s public farewell drew thousands to the marina and surrounding balconies, including visitors from across Europe, North America, Australia and New Zealand. On Sunday, the final hand each skipper shook before leaving the dock belonged to Sir Robin, with an encouraging word for every sailor.

A harbour full of history

The parade of sail brought together the locally built Viking replica Olaf d’Olonne, classic yachts from La Rochelle and Kifanlo, the traditional fishing boat built in Les Sables in 1955. A Class Globe 5.80 represented the recently completed 2025–26 Mini Globe Race, followed by Explorer, the Swan 57 veteran of the 2023–24 Ocean Globe Race, and Bernard Moitessier’s legendary ketch Joshua. Around 25 colourful wooden Olonnois boats added a distinctly local flourish.

The GGR entrants left the marina at two-minute intervals, echoing the individual departures of the 1968 race. Sunshine and cheering crowds made a glorious backdrop, but nobody mistook this for an ordinary Sunday sail. The modern race produced five non-stop finishers from 18 starters in 2018, and three from 16 in 2022; other 2022 finishers completed in the separate Chichester Class.

A gentle start, then Biscay bites

Beyond the breakwater, the fleet set sail in barely enough wind to fill the canvas. The coastal course led around La Nouch south cardinal, west to Petit Barge and back to La Nouch before the boats headed offshore. Britain’s Henry Wootton, aboard the Cape George 36 Privateer, was first around the final mark.

Surrounded by spectator yachts, the boats picked up speed as the breeze built to 7–12 knots, only to stall in stubborn wind holes. The first night’s light headwinds and 1.5mtr seas strengthened through Monday. By Tuesday morning, a front brought 25–35-knot southwesterlies and 3mtr seas directly ahead one again, reports of seasickness and the unwelcome discovery of leaks above bunks and chart tables . Biscay had finished being hospitable.

GGR Window Live already a success

The start up of the “world first” GGR Window Live has already created waves within the adventure and sailing community and it is here for the next eight months 24/7. The current 600-1000 live viewers is expected to grow in the weeks ahead. Followers can watch and listen to the eight skippers in real time. The sailors are giving regular explanations of everything associated with their day or night, while explaining the impact of “Mal der Mer”?? 

Britain’s Ertan Beskardes, sailing the Rustler 36 Miss Beagle, took the long view. Having run as high as second, he simply stopped sailing for the night and did not resume until around midday Tuesday. On GGR Window Live, he explained that rest and protecting the boat mattered more than pressing hard in the opening miles.

Norway’s Helga Marie (Mara) Løvenskiold Kveseth, aboard the Saltram Saga 36 Showgirl, gave viewers of the WINDOW LIVE an equally honest account of frustrating leaks below. Seen resting on the cabin sole not feeling the best, Mara offered a reminder that the reality of ocean racing is not always the view from the helicopter.

Early repairs, determined returns

Sweden’s Pär Nyman, on the Rustler 36 Lazy Otter, returned to port after losing a critical rigging component overboard before the start and then discovering a rudder problem offshore. Monday’s haul-out revealed one broken bolt; a second snapped during removal. The 2018 GGR winner Jean Luc Van den Heede secured the parts and repairs completed, he was finishing preparations on Tuesday and hoped to leave early on Wednesday, 9 September. Slow progress offshore has limited the fleet’s head start to only 140 miles.

The youngest skipper, France’s Louis Kerdelhué, reported another concern around midday Tuesday from his Biscay 36 IE Charge: the Hydrovane control head was swinging freely and could not be secured. He considered returning to Les Sables for repairs before restarting again, but a second call a few hours later brought better news. A temporary fix was holding, and he was continuing.

The race to escape Biscay

At 12:00 UTC on Tuesday, 8 September, France’s Damien Guillou led aboard the Rustler 36 Solarem after taking a southerly track. The fleet had divided, with a northern group hoping to reach the forecast windshift first. In the event, the new breeze arrived across both groups at much the same time, leaving the contest for Cape Finisterre unresolved.

Tuesday’s race-control forecast placed a high-pressure centre over the fleet within the following 24–36 hours. Boats rounding Cape Finisterre before the wind faded could gain a day or two on those trapped behind. Clearly Damien Guillou has a plan, but it is not certain it will be successful? 

“Getting out of the Bay of Biscay is always a struggle,” said Don McIntyre, founder and chairman of the Golden Globe Race. “The first boats around may suddenly jump ahead of the fleet by a day or two.”

For now, the Southern Ocean remains roughly two months away. First come the North Atlantic, the equatorial doldrums and the long passage down the South Atlantic. The farewell was unforgettable; the patience test has only just begun.

Fleet order at 12:00 UTC — 8 September 2026

Provisional snapshot supplied by GGR race control. Positions will change; see the live tracker for subsequent updates.

Pos.	Skipper	Country	Yacht
1	Damien Guillou	France	Solarem
2	Pat Lawless	Ireland	Silvermines Hydro
3	Guido Cantini	Italy	Hannah of Cowes
4	Guy deBoer	USA	Spirit
5	Etienne Messikommer	Switzerland	Bernard
6	Matt Woodside	USA	Tipi Haere
7	Louis Kerdelhué	France	IE Charge
8	Henry Wootton	United Kingdom	Privateer
9	Daniel Pinsky	Israel	Exodus
10	Ertan Beskardes	United Kingdom	Miss Beagle
11	Isa Rosli	Canada	Olleanna
12	Andrea Lodolo	Italy	BiBi
13	Helga Marie (Mara) Løvenskiold Kveseth	Norway	Showgirl
14	Gunnar Christensen	USA	Pompoen
15	Selim Yalcin	Turkey	Help Disabled Children

In port: Pär Nyman (Sweden), Lazy Otter — preparing to depart Les Sables-d’Olonne following repairs; hoped-for departure early Wednesday, 9 September.

Follow every mile

On Start day, race organisers report more than 500,000 Facebook views, 40,000 unique website visitors and over 250,000 web page views. The first daily tracker briefing by Don McIntyre attracted more than 30,000 viewers.

The daily briefing is scheduled daily at 08:00 UTC on Facebook and YouTube throughout the race, explaining positions, tactics and weather for sailors and newcomers alike. GGR Window Live adds one-way onboard video, a scrolling breaking-news ticker and daily messages from the entrants. Follow the live tracker, daily reports and official Instagram channel for the latest developments.

Media enquiries: press@goldengloberace.com
Official website: goldengloberace.com

Final Green Card checks, two generations of race legends, live onboard cameras and emotional farewells mark the closing countdown to Sunday’s solo, non-stop circumnavigation.

At a glance

• Official departure press conference open to the public at 10:30am on Thursday, 3 September, with Sir Robin Knox-Johnston, Jean-Luc Van Den Heede and all 16 entrants at the Ecole de Peche opposite GGR marina. Facebook and Youtube LIVE coverage
• The 2026 McIntyre Golden Globe Race starts on Sunday, 6 September. The Parade of Sail begins at 14:00 CEST, with the 16 race yachts departing the marina at two-minute intervals from 14:30.
• The first 2026 GGR Green Cards have been issued to Daniel Pinsky of Israel and Pat Lawless of Ireland. Thirteen of the 16 safety inspections are now complete.
• Scheduled GGR Window Live marina broadcasts begin on Thursday, 3 September at 08:00 UTC / 10:00 CEST, rotating across eight participating boats.

With only five days remaining before the 2026 McIntyre Golden Globe Race starts on Sunday, 6 September, the Vendée Globe Marina in Les Sables-d’Olonne has entered its most intense phase.

Sixteen skippers are completing their final checks, loading fresh provisions, meeting a growing international media contingent and preparing to say goodbye to family and friends before an anticipated eight months alone at sea.

Sailed without GPS or modern electronic navigation aids, the 30,000-nautical-mile race asks competitors to navigate using sextants, compasses and paper charts as they attempt a solo, non-stop and unassisted circumnavigation.

Across the three previous Golden Globe Race editions, 43 sailors started—and only nine finished.

First Green Cards issued

The first official 2026 GGR Green Cards have now been issued.

A Green Card is the organiser’s final confirmation that a skipper and yacht have completed the required safety, administrative and compliance checks and are cleared to start.

Daniel Pinsky of Israel received the first Green Card, followed by Ireland’s Pat Lawless.

“Receiving the first Green Card is a very special moment. It makes everything feel real. After years of dreaming and eight months of intense preparation, I’m now officially cleared to start one of the greatest adventures in sailing.

“It’s exciting, it’s humbling, and it gives me extra confidence knowing that both the boat and I are ready. Now, I just can’t wait for Sunday.”

— Daniel Pinsky, Israel

Safety inspections are complete for 13 of the 16 entrants. The remaining three have final equipment matters outstanding. Subject to the arrival and verification of those items, race officials expect to complete the remaining checks within 48 hours.

The main race and safety briefings are also complete, covering medical procedures, security and crisis management.

One final departure briefing remains on Friday, when the skippers will receive the latest operational information for leaving Les Sables-d’Olonne.

Provisions, celebrations and difficult farewells

Across the pontoon, fresh food and final stores are being carried aboard for a voyage that may keep the sailors alone at sea for around eight months.

Family members and friends are arriving from around the world, bringing energy and celebration to the marina—and the difficult reality of a long separation.

“The final week before a Golden Globe start is unlike anything else. Years of preparation come down to just a handful of days. There’s excitement, but also quiet reflection.

“Families know they’ll soon lose sight of their loved ones, and the skippers know they’re about to step into a dream they’ve worked years to realise.

“On Sunday, modern life falls away, and it becomes just the sailor, the wind, the sea and the stars.”

— Don McIntyre, Golden Globe Race Chairman

The skippers have shared several informal gatherings during the build-up. The official Captains’ Dinner on Thursday evening will bring entrants, race officials, partners and invited guests together for one final celebration before the start.

Two generations of winners at the final press conference

The official final pre-start press conference begins at 10:30 CEST on Thursday, 3 September at:

École des Pêches (CFFM)
Allée du Frère Maximin
85100 Les Sables-d’Olonne, France

All 16 remaining entrants are scheduled to attend, joined by Sir Robin Knox-Johnston, winner of the original 1968 Sunday Times Golden Globe Race, and Jean-Luc Van Den Heede, winner of the 2018 edition.

The conference is open to the public and will be streamed live on the official Golden Globe Race Facebook page and Golden Globe Race YouTube channel.

Sir Robin had hoped to sail Suhaili, his historic 1968 winning yacht, to Les Sables-d’Olonne. Persistent headwinds prevented the yacht from reaching the marina in time.

After securing Suhaili safely, Sir Robin continued the journey by road and is expected to arrive for the conference.

Suhaili will not be present in the marina, but her story and achievement remain at the heart of the week’s celebrations.

Golden Globe heritage afloat

Master model-maker Bernard Mauviel has arrived with large radio-controlled models of Suhaili, Joshua and Teignmouth Electron.

The three celebrated yachts from the original Golden Globe story are expected to sail within the marina over the coming days, bringing the event’s extraordinary history to life for visitors.

The full programme of public activities is available on the GGR 2026 events page.

GGR Window Live opens—and a new audio documentary begins

Following final system tests, GGR Window Live is operational.

Scheduled marina broadcasts begin on Thursday, 3 September from 08:00 UTC / 10:00 CEST, rotating across eight participating boats.

Followers can watch the final preparations and, once the race begins, receive live one-way video and selected onboard data—while no information can be sent back to the skippers.

Media commitments across radio, television and digital platforms are increasing as journalists arrive from several countries.

A new international audio documentary project will also follow the race. Every skipper has been equipped with a dedicated cassette recorder to capture personal thoughts, emotions and the raw sounds of life at sea throughout the circumnavigation.

The recordings are planned to form a six-to-eight-part series, returning listeners to the intimacy of an earlier era, when audiences gathered around the radio and the sailor’s voice carried the entire adventure.

Sunday, 6 September: the adventure begins

The 2026 McIntyre Golden Globe Race starts from Les Sables-d’Olonne on Sunday, 6 September.

The Parade of Sail begins at 14:00 CEST, and the 16 race yachts will depart the Vendée Globe Marina at two-minute intervals from 14:30.

Full spectator information—including passenger boat options—is available on the official GGR race-start page.

By then, the inspections and public celebrations will fall away, leaving 16 sailors, 16 boats and 30,000 nautical miles around the world—and one question:

Who will return?

The public is invited to meet 16 skippers and view their classic yachts from 22 August, following Damien Guillou’s SITraN Challenge victory and the fleet’s first multi-boat GGR Live Window test.

Official Public Welcome: Saturday, 22 August 2026 at 14:30, GGR Pavilion, Place Vendée Globe, Port Olona. Open to everyone; no pass required.

Key points

• Mayor Nicolas Chénéchaud will officially welcome the 16 remaining McIntyre GGR skippers at 14:30 on Saturday, 22 August. The public marina pontoon and GGR Pavilion will be open daily from 10:00 to 19:00.
• French skipper Damien Guillou won the SITraN Challenge Prologue aboard the Rustler 36 Solarem, ahead of Henry Wootton’s Cape George 36 Privateer and Andrea Lodolo’s Rustler 36 BiBi.
• Seven yachts transmitted through the one-way GGR Live Window during the prologue. Guillou has now joined the programme, bringing the 2026 race total to eight participating skippers.
• American-Irish skipper Colm Walker has withdrawn from the 2026 race after an approximately 8,000-nautical-mile passage. He plans to return in 2030, while his Tayana 37 Mo Chuisle remains on display at the marina.

LES SABLES-D’OLONNE, France – 21 August 2026 – The 2026 McIntyre Golden Globe Race enters its final countdown on Saturday, 22 August, when Mayor Nicolas Chénéchaud officially welcomes the 16 remaining skippers at the GGR Pavilion at 14:30.

Everyone is invited, and no special pass is required. Visitors can enter the public area of the Vendée Globe Marina pontoon to see the race yachts at close quarters and meet the sailors as they complete their final preparations. The GGR Pavilion will open daily from 10:00 to 19:00, presenting the history of the Golden Globe Race, the sailors and boats of the 2026 edition, and the extraordinary challenge ahead.

This is not a conventional boat show but a working marina in full pre-race mode. Equipment is being tested, provisions stowed and final jobs completed before the fleet departs. The 16 sailors are preparing to race more than 28,000 nautical miles solo, non-stop and without outside assistance, navigating with sextants and paper charts aboard traditional long-keel yachts in the spirit of the original 1968 Sunday Times Golden Globe Race.

Damien Guillou wins the SITraN Challenge Prologue

The public welcome follows the successful completion of the three-day SITraN Challenge Prologue, the fleet’s final extended offshore systems test before the round-the-world race. The event also supported the Sheffield Institute for Translational Neuroscience (SITraN) and its research into conditions including motor neurone disease, Parkinson’s disease, dementia, stroke and multiple sclerosis.

A light-weather start was followed by a northerly breeze that never fully established. Winds retained a westerly component, producing short, choppy conditions during the first 24 hours. Although uncomfortable at times, the conditions remained manageable and gave crews a valuable opportunity to test satellite communications, HF radios, trackers, windvane self-steering systems and emergency procedures.

French skipper Damien Guillou brought the Rustler 36 Solarem home in first place. British skipper Henry Wootton finished second aboard the Cape George 36 Privateer, with Italian skipper Andrea Lodolo third aboard the Rustler 36 BiBi.

Waypoint confusion – but no protests and no penalties

The prologue also delivered a useful reminder that precision matters at sea. Seven boats did not complete a technically valid rounding of one virtual waypoint. The specified latitude was 46°30′N, equivalent to 46.500°N in decimal degrees. Some navigators entered 46.30°N instead – 46°18′N, approximately 12 nautical miles farther south – while others passed on the wrong side of the required position, one by as little as 25 metres.

The errors were readily acknowledged on the dock, in several cases with a smile. No competitor lodged a protest, and because the SITraN Challenge was a fun training and systems-check event, the organisers decided that no penalties would be applied. The finishing order therefore stands: Guillou first, Wootton second and Lodolo third.

GGR Live Window completes first multi-boat offshore test

Seven yachts transmitted through the new GGR Live Window during the prologue, giving followers an early look at the live coverage planned throughout the round-the-world race.

Developed with Swedish technology partner TriPeak, the purpose-built system uses Starlink satellite connectivity to send live video, selected boat data and other information ashore while remaining strictly one-way. No messages, weather information, internet data or navigational assistance can be sent back to the skipper.

The offshore shakedown revealed expected commissioning issues, including intermittent audio and camera glitches and some operator errors. TriPeak nevertheless collected valuable operational data, and the overall trial was successful. Testing and software refinements will continue while the yachts are alongside, with the system scheduled to be fully operational for the start.

Damien Guillou has now confirmed that Solarem will participate in the GGR Live Window during the race, bringing the total number of participating skippers to eight.

Colm Walker withdraws from the 2026 race

American-Irish skipper Colm Walker reached Les Sables-d’Olonne on 17 August aboard his Tayana 37 Mo Chuisle after an extraordinary passage of approximately 8,000 nautical miles from the west coast of the United States, through the Panama Canal and across the Atlantic.

After arriving, Walker assessed a growing list of problems aboard the yacht, including numerous deck leaks and substantially more repair work than could reasonably be completed before the 6 September departure. He has therefore withdrawn from the 2026 McIntyre Golden Globe Race and intends to prepare for the 2030 edition.

His yacht, Mo Chuisle, will remain at the GGR Marina and can be viewed alongside the rest of the fleet.

Final inspections and preparations begin

Every yacht will now undergo detailed safety and equipment inspections. The official programme on 26 and 27 August includes checks of safety and emergency gear, communications, rigging, navigation equipment and compliance with the race’s traditional-technology rules.

Several issues have already emerged during the final preparation period, including the failure of long-range HF/SSB radios aboard two yachts. Both units are being replaced. These are precisely the weaknesses the prologue and inspection period are designed to reveal before the boats head into the Southern Ocean.

Despite the inevitable last-minute jobs, the fleet is generally well prepared and the mood around the marina remains notably calm.

The Parade of Sail begins at 14:00 on Sunday, 6 September. From 14:30, the McIntyre GGR yachts will leave the Vendée Globe Marina one by one at two-minute intervals, heading down the famous Les Sables-d’Olonne channel before setting sail for Cape Horn – and, ultimately, back to Les Sables-d’Olonne.

About the McIntyre Golden Globe Race

The McIntyre Golden Globe Race is a solo, non-stop and unassisted race around the world, sailed in approved production yachts of traditional design using technology available to sailors during the original 1968 Sunday Times Golden Globe Race. The 2026 event is the fourth Golden Globe Race overall and the third modern edition. It starts from Les Sables-d’Olonne on Sunday, 6 September 2026.

Useful links

• Official Golden Globe Race website
• Official Public Welcome
• 2026 event programme
• 2026 skipper profiles
• GGR Live Tracker
• GGR Live Window
• GGR YouTube live streams
• GGR 2026 press-release photos
• Media accreditation
• Facebook | Instagram

Media contact: press@goldengloberace.com

Support Life-Changing Research at SITraN

The McIntyre Golden Globe Race 2026 is proud to support the Sheffield Institute for Translational Neuroscience (SITraN) as its charity of choice.

SITraN brings together leading scientists, clinicians and researchers working to develop new treatments and improve care for people affected by neurological conditions, including motor neurone disease, Parkinson’s, dementia, stroke and multiple sclerosis.

Every donation—large or small—will help advance this vital research and bring new hope to patients and their families.

DONATE TO SITRAN NOW

Thank you for joining the Golden Globe Race community in supporting pioneering, life-changing neuroscience research.

• Seventeen brave sailors from around the world are making their final preparations to survive the world’s longest, loneliest and most gruelling individual mind game in sport.
• Eight months of total isolation lie ahead as the sailors push traditional yachts some 30,000 miles solo and non-stop around the world, navigating with sextants and paper charts and receiving no outside assistance.
• History suggests that around 20% may finish. Across the previous three McIntyre Golden Globe editions, 43 sailors started and only nine finished.

LES SABLES-D’OLONNE, FRANCE: The adventure is becoming very real.

Sixteen of the 17 provisional entrants in the 2026 McIntyre Golden Globe Race are now in Les Sables-d’Olonne for the final countdown to their extraordinary solo, non-stop and unassisted race around the world, starting Sunday, 6 September.

The official arrival deadline was 10 August, and the coming weeks are filled with final preparations, critical safety inspections, medical and emergency training, briefings and last-minute work on the yachts.

The GGR SITraN Prologue starts at 1400 hrs on Sunday, 16 August

The three-day, two-night offshore trial will test every onboard system under real sailing conditions, including the live-transmission systems.

Entrants may sail two-handed or three-handed—the choice is theirs. It is a serious offshore systems test, but also a fun race before the final preparations begin.

These are not the high-speed, computer-driven flying machines of modern professional ocean racing. GGR sailors head south alone aboard small traditional yachts, navigating with sextants and paper charts, without GPS, computers or modern navigational assistance.

Once they leave, they must solve their own problems, make their own decisions and live with themselves through months of storms, calms, cold, heat, fear, exhaustion and absolute isolation.

For most, simply reaching Les Sables-d’Olonne has already taken years of work.

Across the three previous editions of the McIntyre Golden Globe, 43 sailors set out and only nine crossed the finish line—a completion rate of just 21%. If history repeated itself, only three or four of today’s 17 entrants might return as official finishers.

This time, however, Don McIntyre believes the depth of preparation and accumulated knowledge within the fleet could change those odds dramatically.

“I would love to see at least half of this fleet cross the finish line,” said Don McIntyre. “They are more prepared than any fleet we have seen across the previous three editions. But this race has a habit of writing its own story. The oceans always have the final say.”

The GGR Marina is open—come and meet the sailors

Starting Saturday, 22 August, the Golden Globe Marina becomes the public home of the Golden Globe Race, with the GGR pontoon and Pavilion open to visitors.

No special passes are needed to walk through the public pontoon area and meet the sailors as they complete their final preparations.

Mayor Nicolas Chénéchaud will officially welcome and introduce all entrants at 14:30 on 22 August. Everyone is invited to this special occasion.

This is an unusual opportunity to get close to a round-the-world race before it starts. Visitors will see the skippers working on the same boats that, just days later, will be heading alone towards the Southern Ocean and Cape Horn.

Every day brings something different.

At approximately 13:30, visitors can learn the basics of celestial navigation during a celestial noon-sight demonstration, using a sextant to measure the sun close to its highest point.

Entrant poster-signing sessions run from 14:00 to 15:00, with regular skipper question-and-answer sessions in the GGR Pavilion.

Guided visits bring groups onto the pontoon to discover the boats, understand their equipment and, where possible, meet the skippers themselves.

The GGR Pavilion will also provide race information, history and merchandise. From 29 August, the Association Méridienne’s Art of Navigation exhibition will showcase historic navigation instruments and the techniques mariners relied upon long before satellites and GPS.

The complete programme of events, dates and times is available through the Golden Globe Race website. The official printed programme is also in production.

History comes alive on the marina

The Golden Globe has always been about more than racing. It is also about remembering the sailors who first proved what might be possible.

From 29 August, the legendary Suhaili, in which Sir Robin Knox-Johnston became the first person to sail solo and non-stop around the world, and Bernard Moitessier’s famous Joshua will join the GGR fleet in the marina.

There will also be history in miniature.

Master model builder Bernard Mauviel will sail three spectacular large radio-controlled models on the marina basin during the final ten days before the start: Suhaili, Joshua and Teignmouth Electron, the trimaran sailed by original 1968 Golden Globe entrant Donald Crowhurst.

The three boats represent some of the most enduring human stories from the race that started it all.

The story behind the models

Whenever possible, Bernard Mauviel tracked down the original plans for each yacht. He even obtained the plans for Teignmouth Electron from Simon Crowhurst, son of Donald Crowhurst.

These extraordinary models are more than replicas. They preserve the personalities, boats and human stories of the original 1968 Golden Globe Race, allowing a new generation to experience its remarkable history.

FairWinds Virtual GGR—now everyone can race

For the first time, followers do not have to simply watch the adventure. They can race around the world themselves.

The new FairWinds Virtual Golden Globe Race allows anyone with a computer to command a virtual Rustler 36 and race through the same real-time weather systems experienced by the real fleet.

There is also a twist worthy of the Golden Globe.

Players wanting the complete retro experience can turn to celestial navigation, learning to use a virtual sextant and traditional techniques to work out where they are.

Registration and GGR racing are free, making it possible for complete beginners and serious virtual sailors alike to discover the art—and occasional frustration—of navigating the oceans without simply looking at a GPS position.

It is fun, it can become very serious, and even someone who has never held a sextant before can learn the fundamentals of finding their way across an ocean using the sun and stars.

A world first—the GGR Live Window

The 2026 race will introduce something never before attempted in solo around-the-world yacht racing: the GGR Live Window.

Specially developed one-way satellite technology will allow followers to step aboard selected yachts through live video on YouTube while preserving the strict isolation of the sailors themselves.

The system sends information off the boat—but nothing comes back. The sailor cannot receive messages, weather information, internet data or outside advice through the system.

Viewers, however, will be able to see live video together with selected sailing and biometric information—even the skipper’s heartbeat.

Scheduled two-to-three-hour live transmissions from different yachts will rotate throughout the voyage, with the ability to interrupt normal programming when major events unfold.

The current planned line-up includes Andrea Lodolo of Italy, Ertan Beskardes of the United Kingdom, Gunnar Christensen of the USA, Helga Marie “Mara” Løvenskiold Kveseth of Norway, Etienne Messikommer of Switzerland, Pär Nyman of Sweden and Louis Kerdelhué of France.

An eighth participant may join, subject to final confirmation.

For the sailors, it remains 1968. For the audience, it is very much 2026!

No starting gun—racing the clock, just like 1968

There will be no conventional massed starting line on 6 September. That is deliberate.

The original 1968 Sunday Times Golden Globe Race had no single starting gun. Its nine entrants were free to depart from different ports over a period of months, effectively racing themselves and the clock.

Sir Robin Knox-Johnston ultimately became the only finisher and the first person to sail solo and non-stop around the world.

The 2026 departure pays tribute to that history. At the end of the race, the overall times will be compared to declare the winner.

The Parade of Sail begins at 14:00, before the GGR yachts leave the Golden Globe Marina one at a time, at two-minute intervals, beginning at 14:30.

They will motor at three knots down the famous Les Sables-d’Olonne channel through the crowds, before hoisting sail near the harbour entrance.

From there, the yachts head to the South Cardinal mark at La Nouch, sail west towards Petit Barge, then return past La Nouch before finally pointing their bows offshore.

Their next destination? Les Sables-d’Olonne—via Cape Horn!

The route through the bay will give spectators along the foreshore an exceptional view of the fleet under sail before the boats disappear over the horizon and begin their long journey south.

For anyone wanting to get even closer, the city has chartered the passenger vessel Port Fromentine to take spectators into the bay on start day.

Tickets can be booked through the official race-start information on the GGR website. Places are limited.

Who will come home?

For those standing beside the channel on Sunday, 6 September, the departure will be far more than a sporting start.

Every skipper passing between the harbour walls is about to sail into the unknown.

They are experienced. They are adventurous. They are determined. But no amount of preparation can tell them what the next eight months will bring: the storms they may face, the equipment that might break, the decisions they will have to make or the personal battles that come from being completely alone, month after month.

As the final yacht disappears towards the horizon, one question will hang over Les Sables-d’Olonne:

Who will come back?

“Start day will be an incredible moment,” said Don McIntyre. “We will watch these brave, experienced and adventurous sailors leave Les Sables-d’Olonne and wonder what they are about to experience out there—and which of them we will see sailing back through this channel approximately eight months later.

“That is the Golden Globe. One sailor, one boat and the great oceans of the world. No one knows how the story ends.”

The 2026 McIntyre Golden Globe Race starts from Les Sables-d’Olonne, France, on Sunday, 6 September 2026.

The official GGR 2026 Souvenir Book is out!

Explore the official GGR 2026 Souvenir Book, featuring the race’s history, the 2026 skippers and their boats, the route map, stories, event information and everything you need to follow the adventure. Check it out here.

MEDIA ALERT – ATTEND IN PERSON OR WATCH LIVE

PRESS CONFERENCE INVITATION – McIntyre GOLDEN GLOBE RACE

In less than a month, 17 provisional entrants are scheduled to set sail on 6 September in one of sailing’s most extreme challenges: the 2026 McIntyre Golden Globe Race.

When: 15:00 UTC / 17:00 CEST, Thursday, 13 August 2026.

Where: GGR Office, École des Pêches, Allée du Frère Maximin, Les Sables-d’Olonne, and live on the GGR Facebook and YouTube channels.

Who: Participating 2026 skippers, Jean-Luc Van Den Heede, and GGR Founder and Chairman Don McIntyre

What: Skipper interviews, the latest race news and media photo opportunities. 

The 17-entrant provisional fleet is gathering in Les Sables-d’Olonne.The skippers are preparing for one of the most difficult challenges of their lives, starting on 6 September 2026.

Recognised as the Grandmother of the Vendée Globe: the GGR is a solo, non-stop, unassisted round-the-world race, without GPS or modern electronic navigation aids.

Competitors sail traditional production yachts and navigate with sextants, compasses and paper charts, using the sun and stars.

The 17 sailors, representing 11 countries, are preparing to embark on this exceptional adventure with one ambition: to finish.

Some will also hope to win—and beat the 211-day GGR record set by legendary French sailor Jean-Luc Van Den Heede.

In the past three editions of the GGR, 43 sailors started and only nine finished!

Come meet these adventurers in the midst of their preparations

Please confirm your in-person attendance by emailing press@goldengloberace.com

or by calling +33 6 71 16 02 16.