The McIntyre GGR embraces satellites for the audience, while keeping entrants behind with 1968 radios, sextants and paper charts.

• A custom-built “MAGIC BLACK BOX” will open a one-way LIVE WINDOW into the lives of seven 2026 McIntyre Golden Globe Race entrants, controlled only by an ON/OFF command from the sailor.
• For eight months, followers will be able to open the YouTube “GGR Window” 24 hours a day to watch scheduled 2–3 hour daily live transmissions, breaking news interruptions and the latest fleet news scrolling across the bottom of the screen.
• The system is designed to dramatically increase the reach of the world’s original solo race around the world, starting September 6, 2026 from Les Sables d’Olonne, France, while protecting the race’s strict 1968 ethos.

Les Sables d’Olonne, France — The 2026 McIntyre Golden Globe Race will give followers something never before seen in solo around-the-world racing: a 24/7 one-way live window into selected yachts racing around the world, without giving sailors any modern communication or navigation advantage.

The “GGR Window” will stream live video, boat movement and selected onboard data from seven of the 23 entrants on a rotating daily schedule. Each participating skipper will be able to go live during a two or three hour time slot by pressing one button, choosing one of three cameras, and transmitting. From that moment, GGR control takes over the production.

Breaking news or dramatic incidents can interrupt normal programming at any time, while a scrolling news footer will keep followers updated on the rest of the fleet. The result is simple for viewers: open the YouTube “GGR Window” and step onboard with the sailors, live, as the race unfolds.

For the sailors, nothing changes. They cannot see the data being sent, cannot receive information back, and cannot access satellite communications, computers, GPS or modern navigation aids. The system sends information out, but sends nothing in.

The GGR Window automatically displays skipper heart rate, yacht pitch and roll, apparent wind speed and direction, speed and course over the ground. This information is for the audience and race production only. It is invisible to the entrant.

Seven skippers join the first GGR Window schedule

The seven participating skippers are Ertan Beskardes (UK, 65), Stephen Wraith (USA, 65), Gunnar Christensen (USA, 60), Etienne Messikommer (CH, 38), Louis Kerdelhué (FRA, 21), Helga Marie “Mara” Løvenskiold Kveseth (NOR, 35), and Pär Nyman (SWE, 57).

This LIVE WINDOW isn’t just a wild way of showing what’s actually going on inside the GGR, but it also motivates me to keep pushing on through the hard times.

Mara Kveseth (NOR, 35) – GGR 2026 entrant, SY SHOWGIRL, Saga 36

Most people spend their lives trying to escape uncertainty. I’ve chosen to sail directly into it, alone, around the world, with nothing but wind, judgment, and whatever version of myself comes back. I hope the audience can come with me through the GGR live stream.

Gunnar Christensen (USA, 60) – GGR 2026 entrant, SY POMPOEN, Hans Christian 34

1968 sailing, 2026 audience access

The ethos of the Golden Globe Race remains clear: entrants sail like 1968, in the spirit of the original Sunday Times Golden Globe Race won by Sir Robin Knox-Johnston in SUHAILI. Fifty-eight years later, the 2026 entrants still race with paper charts, sextant, wind-up clocks and towing logs. HF SSB radio remains their only link to the outside world.

That is what makes the GGR Window unusual. The audience is invited in, but the sailor is not connected out. There are no screens, no computers and no incoming data for the entrant. The black box is a one-way broadcast device, not a communication tool.

The black box that did not exist

With no computers or satellite access allowed for entrants, the GGR Window required custom-built electronics, circuit boards, hardware and management software. Don McIntyre teamed with Swedish technology company TriPeak to develop a compact marine-hardened black box with six buttons, built for an eight-month ocean adventure and designed to use minimal power, averaging around 4 amps.

This is a game changer for the GGR, with absolutely zero entrant impact on the 1968 ethos. Our experience in the McIntyre Mini Globe Race, where all but one entrant was using Starlink and computers, made us think. But GGR could not use any components currently available, so we built our own thanks to TriPeak. It costs a lot, but the reason we invest in adventure, even without major partners, is to inspire people. This will shoot the numbers through the roof for mums and dads and sailors alike, inspiring many more than we ever have in the past. It’s truly exciting.

Don McIntyre,GGR Founder and Race Director.

TriPeak joins as streaming platform partner

TriPeak is the streaming platform partner for the GGR Window. The company builds purpose-built product solutions for demanding operating environments and delivers complete systems end to end, including hardware design, embedded software, systems integration, cloud platform and field operations, rather than handing separate components to integrators.

A major investment in audience growth

The total investment in prototype hardware, software, production units and eight months of management is around €300,000. It is a major commitment for McIntyre Adventure and the participating sailors, especially as the 2026 McIntyre GGR again has no major sponsor and, in fact, less sponsor support than ever before.

The same system is planned for the 2027 McIntyre Ocean Globe Race, the fully crewed four-leg race around the world run in the spirit of the original 1973 Whitbread Race. The 2022 McIntyre GGR recorded a total Advertising Value Equivalent (AVE) of €165 million, excluding social media and YouTube. With the GGR Window, the 2026 edition has the potential to be significantly larger. McIntyre Adventure continues to seek partners and sponsors for the project.

First live test begins August 16

The first three-day live test of the GGR Window will begin on August 16, 2026 during the SITraN Challenge Prologue Race from Les Sables d’Olonne. A camera will also be set up in the McIntyre GGR office to occasionally share operations with followers. The 2026 McIntyre Golden Globe Race starts on September 6, 2026 from Les Sables d’Olonne, France.

Check out the Lead-up events click here

• No GPS, no sat phones, no computers, totally alone… BUT would YOU watch it LIVE on YOUTUBE?
• Windspeed, direction, boat speed, course, and skipper heart rate, body temperature, and blood pressure in the middle of Southern Ocean storms, or while sleeping,  from entrants a few hours a day!
• The fourth Golden Globe Race, starting from Les Sables d’Olonne, FRANCE on Sept 6th 2026, is on the verge of world-first 24/7 LIVE YouTube coverage, while still maintaining the GGR 1968 ETHOS.
• The GGR is the longest, loneliest, most gruelling and psychologically demanding sporting event on the planet! It’s sailing like 1968. The organisers have built a unique one-way satellite LIVE WINDOW, but should they use it?

The 1968 Sunday Times Golden Globe Race was the first ever sailing race around the world. Nine started and only one finished. Robin Knox-Johnston, onboard his 32ft ketch SUHAILI, became the first person ever to circumnavigate solo and non-stop. Man had also just landed on the moon. The 1969 Apollo moon landing guidance computer ran at 1.024 MHz with just 4 KB RAM and 72 KB storage. Today iPhones run near 4 GHz with 8 GB RAM and hundreds of gigabytes, making them millions of times more powerful, yet Apollo still had a backup sextant! Just in case!

In 2015, Australian adventurer Don McIntyre announced the Golden Globe Race was back for its 50th Anniversary in 2018. It was a simple idea. Sail like it’s 1968 in old-fashioned yachts without computers, GPS, electric clocks, or satellite phones, and only HF SSB radios for communication. There would be no satellite weather and music had to be on cassette tapes. Sextants with paper charts and towing logs would keep you safe! Modern tech was banned. It was retro, an original idea and a huge success. The ultimate human adventure with real stories and drama. But McIntyre paid a heavy price. There was no satellite media so no sponsors took the title. Even so, followers around the world grew rapidly.

The third edition of the McIntyre GGR in 2022 saw only three finishers from 18 starters. Again, there was plenty of drama and real adventure. South African Kirsten Neuschäfer became the first ever woman to win any yacht race around the world. Still no satellite media and still no title sponsor. McIntyre resisted satellites once again to keep with the 1968 ethos of complete sailor isolation and sextants.

Then came the 2025 McIntyre Mini Globe Race, a 28,000-mile solo race around the world in 19ft/5.8m plywood ALMA Globe 580 home-built minis. 15 sailors started and 11 finished. All but one sailed with Mini Starlink, reporting live all the way around the world. For the entire race, McIntyre asked, “How could we create a one-way WINDOW in the 2026 GGR without computers?” He tried a system for the 2023 McIntyre Ocean Globe Race, but it was not right. For GGR, computers and iPhones are banned and no online connections are allowed. No current hardware or software anywhere in the world could do what GGR needed. Unless he built his own!!

The ethos of the GGR is simple. No computers, no satellite comms for communication to anyone except GGR, and total sailor isolation. You cannot use satellites or Starlink for 24-hour LIVES without computers. So McIntyre decided to build a unique control system, hardware and new management software from the ground up with the help of TriPeak AB in Switzerland. The design brief: no onboard computers, no way to download anything, no way to speak with anyone, yet still do LIVE streaming video and show skipper biometrics, like heart rate, body temperature and blood pressure, LIVE to the world for eight months!

He did it, and the prototyping and software are now complete. It’s ready to go. It just needs the hardware production budget in a race against time. The GGR starts in 131 days! The program budget is Euro 240,000 and GGR still has no title sponsor and fewer sponsors for this edition than the first!! The final GO/NO GO decision on this LIVE will be made in the next two weeks.

This is truly exciting. We went right back to developing our own circuit boards. No one has ever streamed LIVE 24/7 for an around-the-world yacht race and the GGR is no ordinary race! With this new equipment and software, we can do it and still maintain the ethos of the GGR, like it’s 1968, which we protect fiercely. That is the only reason we can do it. This opportunity will generate a huge number of views and inspire a whole new group of followers. That is the reason we continue to support our three unique around-the-world races. It’s a bit late for sponsors, but this is a game changer for sure and we are open to offers!! The 240,000 budget for this LIVE is supported by entrants themselves, and Jane and I fund the rest. The war and world economy have not helped. Sponsor revenue is down 70% on the last 2022 GGR. But there is a big opportunity here for someone!

Don McIntyre,  GGR Founder and Organiser.

This new system allows a GGR sailor to press a couple of buttons on a control panel to start Starlink and one of three onboard cameras, which then starts transmitting live images to GGR headquarters. It’s that simple. Still isolated, still totally alone and not communicating with anyone, and we have their heart rate too! Followers watching will hear them and the sounds of wind and waves in storms or calms, LIVE. The cockpit camera has night vision without lights, down below has auto-tracking of the sailor, and then there is a hand-held action camera.

GGR then directs the LIVE action to GGR YouTube. Up to four incoming GGR entrant streams can be received at the same time. Participating entrants — not all will, as it is voluntary — will be scheduled on the LIVE YouTube WINDOW at publicised times, allowing followers to tune in to their sailor. If an entrant wants their own 24/7 live streaming for eight months, that is a dedicated GGR entrant window. If there is BREAKING NEWS, or an incident onboard, it immediately overrides the scheduled programming for all to see.

A YES/NO survey for a GGR LIVE WINDOW on social media brought stunning results, best summed up by one comment: “I would give up my job to go home and watch GGR LIVE 24/7!!!” Keep your fingers crossed! Don is waiting by the phone for sponsor calls!

Fifteen of the 26 McIntyre GGR entrants meet for the first time in Les Sables d’Olonne during a two-day conference. 

• 240,000 people visited Les Sables d’Olonne for the start of the 2022 GGR. Ulysses the Greek Sailor who looks out to sea from the shores of Les Sables d’Olonne was the venue for Golden Globe ENTRANTS to extend an invitation to the world, to visit Les Sables d’Olonne for the start of this fourth GGR on Sunday 6^th Sept 2026!  
• NO start gun! The McIntyre GGR start will move back in time to 1968, in the same way the original nine sailors raced the clock and themselves for Glory! 
• Pre-start Race village in doubt, but a GGR pavilion with displays, daily poster signing and an open marina free for visitors to meet the skippers, chat and grab a selfie. Or simply be amazed by these “Classic” small yachts with a big heart, open every day starting 22^nd August 2026. 
• A “Solo Sailing Safety and Heavy Weather Tactics” symposium, open to all sailors is scheduled for Les Sables d’Olonne three days before the GGR starts on Wednesday 2^nd Sept. 2026.  

The mood of McIntyre Golden Globe entrants and managers who met for the first time over two days in Les Sables d’Olonne was a mix of excitement, emotion and pure passion. There was an air of urgency and apprehension for some. For the first time it hit all in attendance that this grand adventure is really happening, and soon! The sailors from 13 countries are all at different stages of preparedness. Some busy in refit or sailing could only attend by Zoom. There were many questions amongst each other, with the organisers and within themselves! Already nine of the original entrants have withdrawn their entry, beaten by time and money. The 26 remaining look strong, but it is still a battle to meet the strict qualifying and training requirements in this initial “Race to the Start”. 

“It is very exciting to see the calibre and diverse nature of this group of enthusiastic sailors out to prove something to themselves” said Don McIntyre, Founder and Race Director of the GGR. “The bond between them is developing and while the conversations were thick, fast and fun over the past two days, not many mentioned the word fear. Each is processing what lay ahead in different ways. They are all coming at it with the knowledge and experience gleaned from three previous editions of the GGR. Only 21% of those sailors made it to the finish. The GGR is a gruelling mind game of attrition without comparison, and it has started already! “    

In 2014 Don McIntyre coined a now well-known GGR phrase, not usually heard in yacht racing.  “It’s all about the stories, human stories” Now adopted by other events, it started at the launch of the 50^th anniversary edition of the Sunday Times Golden Globe. It highlighted the fact that it was not money, satellites, technology or computers driving GGR Yachts around the world. It was one HUMAN, and sextants, paper charts, radios and cassette music tapes being part of the game. This ethos still holds true 11 years later. Most importantly the GGR is the only solo race around the world that absolutely allows no outside assistance. 

The Sunday Times Golden Globe in 1968 was the first ever yacht race around the world. Like that first edition with nine bigger than life characters, this fourth 2026 edition is loaded with real sailors and colourful back stories. No longer are they simply white-haired old men or dreamers!  For the first time two women are up for the challenge, 34-year-old Helga Marie (MARA) from Norway and 44-Year-old film maker Olivia Wyatt from America. 

42 yo professional sailor Damien Guillou from France has his sights firmly fixed on repeating Jean Luc Van Den Heed’s 2018 GGR victory, returning the GOLDEN GLOBE to France from South Africa, won in 2022 by Kirsten Neuschäfer. Damien was forced out of the 2022 edition in Cape Town when his Rustler 36 PRB experienced windvane failure. 

20-year-old French sailor Louis Kerdelhué is training hard on his Biscay 36 Nuri. Recently graduated from University, he now sails full time and is about to announce his title sponsor in the weeks ahead. 73-year-old Edward Walentynowicz from Canada, is the old man of the fleet and has white hair!!  He has sailed his Rustler 36 20,000 miles during five solo transatlantic voyages in the past few years training for the GGR. He will complete the 6^th sailing to the start next year. 

34-year-old Daniel Pinsky from Israel, is the latest to join the GGR. He had been cruising the Atlantic and Med for eight years. By chance he bumped into  Louis Kerdelhué on a marina in Portugal. Louis was out training and had just completed another solo ocean voyage. Daniel was so inspired by the young sailor; he immediately sold his boat, bought a Baba 35 in America and entered the GGR! 

Historic Start back to 1968.

In the 1968 Sunday Times Golden Globe there was no start gun! The nine entrants could start any time between June 1^st and October 31^st. The fastest time around the world would receive a £ 5000 prize (£140,000 in 2025) They raced against themselves and the clock! So, it is that we return to history. There will be no start gun for the 2026 McIntyre Golden Globe. Entrants will depart in line from the Vendee marina at three-minute intervals. They will motor down the famous Les Sables d’Olonne river at three knots to the cheer of spectators wishing them farewell and safe return. When abeam the end of the starboard break water lighthouse they cross the start time and set sail for Les Sables d’Olonne via Cape Horn! Just like in 1968 the fastest time wins. 

No GGR 2026 Village for now? 

Unlike 2018 and 2022, the usual GGR village is not planned for this 2026 edition (Unless a title sponsor budget is found). A GGR Pavilion will be established at the public entrance of the Vendee Marina. This will provide all the usual information and displays telling the McIntyre Golden Globe story. Detailed Information boards introducing all entrants and their yachts, and the adventure ahead will be set up around the perimeter of the marina and opposite each classic yacht. Daily poster signing and open boats sessions, as well as official welcome and farewell events are planned. International fans will be able to follow the Les Sables d’Olonne final buildup to the start with multiple daily LIVE Reports and interviews simultaneously in English and French on GGR Facebook and YouTube.   

 McIntyre GGR “Solo Sailing Safety and Heavy Weather Tactics” Symposium.

 A “Solo Sailing Safety and Heavy Weather Tactics” full day GGR symposium and dinner is open to all sailors and non-sailors. It’s scheduled for Wednesday 2^nd Sept. 2026, three days before the start of the GGR. Details announced in April 2026. It will feature among other things, past and present GGR entrants and well-known solo sailors and survivors in first person presentations, panel discussions, forums and Q&A sessions. The heavy weather report authored by Golden Globe Patron Sir Robin Knox-Johnston after the loss of four boats and numerous dismasting’s in the 2018 GGR will be discussed, as will the loss of three yachts in the 2022 edition. Safety incidents in the 2023 McIntyre Ocean Globe Race and 2025 McIntyre Mini Globe Race will be discussed. Solo sailing equipment and safety gear will be on display and discussed. 

Starts From Les Sables d’Olonne On 6 September 2026

Non-stop around the world, single-handed, without electronics

In 1968, nine skippers set sail on the first solo, non-stop race around the world. After 313 days, only one sailor succeeded in completing the feat of circumnavigating the globe: Robin Knox-Johnston, who, at the age of 29, became the first man to accomplish what many considered impossible.

Another skipper became legendary during this first edition: Bernard Moitessier.

After rounding Cape Horn, while leading the race on his boat “Joshua,” he decided not to cross the finish line and continued on toward the Indian Ocean “to save his soul.” He sailed around the world one and a half times without stopping to reach the tranquility of the islands and wrote “The Long Way,” the book that continues to inspire so many adventurers.

In 1989, a new solo, non-stop round-the-world race was organised: the Vendée Globe.

2018 – 50 YEARS LATER

In 2018, 50 years after the first edition, Don McIntyre decided to revive the Golden Globe Race, and naturally turned to the town of Vendée Globe.

The project seemed crazy: a solo, non-stop round-the-world race, under the same conditions as in 1968.

No technology on board, navigation by sextant, on boats similar to Suhaili, Sir Robin’s 32-foot vessel. Mayor Yannick Moreau saw it as the ancestor of the Vendée Globe, a complementary event to the Everest of the seas, and decided to host the race.

Eighteen sailors of thirteen nationalities set sail with one goal: to beat Sir Robin Knox-Johnston’s record of 312 days and thus make history. Only five participants will finish the race.

Jean-Luc Van Den Heede, one of the world’s greatest sailors, holds the record. At the age of 73, it was Jean-Luc Van Den Heede, skipper from Les Sables d’Olonne, who achieved the feat and won the 2018 Golden Globe Race.

With six circumnavigations of the globe under his belt, this “wolf of the seas” set a record, which he still holds, by completing the GGR in 211 days.

2022 – 2023

In 2022, 16 adventurers set sail from Les Sables d’Olonne for the third edition of the GGR. Tens of thousands of spectators gathered on the channel to cheer them on.

The race was followed around the world, and after 235 days at sea, Kirsten Neuschäfer crossed the finish line in first place.

A new legend is born: she becomes the first woman to win a solo round-the-world sailing race. Only three participants will finish the race.

Extreme and demanding, the GGR has earned its stripes and is now one of the must-see offshore races.
Kirsten has been recognised around the world for her performance in the GGR.

Awards

• Rod Stephens Seamanship Trophy (Cruising Club of America) 2022: for her role in rescuing sailor Tapio Lehtinen, whose boat sank during the Golden Globe Race.
• Blue Water Medal (Cruising Club of America) 2023: in recognition of her perseverance, skill, and 235 days of sailing during the Golden Globe Race.
• Rolex World Sailor of the Year (female) – World Sailing Awards 2023: for her achievement in the Golden Globe Race, including the rescue, and for demonstrating exceptional performance.
• Seamaster Award (boot Düsseldorf) 2024: award for her “historic performance” – her victory in the Golden Globe.
• Cape Horn Award (Trans-Ocean, Bobby Schenk Prize) 2023: for her achievement in the Golden Globe Race, including rounding the capes and her rescue.
• The Duchess of Kent Trophy (Cruising Association) presented in January 2025: in recognition of her historic victory in the Golden Globe and the rescue of Tapio Lehtinen.
• SA Sports Awards – Sportswoman of the Year (South Africa) 2024: Kirsten is named “Sportswoman of the Year” in the SA Sports Awards.

The Longest Sports Event In The World

The route, starting and finishing in Les Sables-d’Olonne, covers more than 30,000 nautical miles and requires competitors to round the three legendary capes of navigation: the Cape of Good Hope, Cape Leeuwin, and Cape Horn. Competitors spend long months at sea, between 200 and 300 days without interruption, in extreme conditions, making this adventure a true test of endurance, resilience, and solitude.

Highlights of the 2022 edition

• In 2022, Kirsten Neuschäfer became the first woman to win, after 235 days at sea.
• A shipwreck and a heroic rescue: Finnish sailor Tapio Lehtinen saw his sailboat sink in the Indian Ocean. He was rescued by Kirsten Neuschäfer, who was also competing in the race, before being transferred to a cargo ship.
• A spectacular grounding: American Guy deBoer ran aground at night on the rocks off
  Fuerteventura in the Canary Islands. He was rescued in the early hours of the morning by the Spanish rescue services.
• A stormy dismasting: Briton Ian Herbert-Jones faced a violent storm in the Southern Ocean. His sailboat was rolled, dismasted, and severely damaged. Slightly injured, he was rescued by a Taiwanese fishing vessel.

Worldwide Media Coverage For Les Sables D’olonne

• International media coverage for the image of Les Sables d’Olonne, valued at €3.6 million in 32 different countries.
• A total of 240,000 visitors were welcomed to Les Sables d’Olonne, in the village, during the start and highlights of the race.
• An event that confirms Les Sables d’Olonne as the capital of solo ocean racing and consolidates the city’s position as the home of the Vendée Globe.

The Rules

Qualification

• To take part, it’s a race for miles: each participant must demonstrate experience, with a minimum of 8,000 miles sailed offshore, 2,000 miles sailed solo on any boat, and 4,000 miles sailed solo aboard their own GGR sailboat, under race conditions, without technology.

During the Race

• The 2022 Golden Globe Race requires all competitors to use nautical charts. No satellite navigation aids. No electronic instruments or autopilots.
• To participate in the race, boats must measure between 32 and 36 feet, be constructed of reinforced polyester, at least 20 produced from the same mould, have a long keel with a rudder attached to the trailing edge, and have a minimum displacement of 6,200 kg.
• Skippers must keep a handwritten logbook.

A unique, pure and tough challenge: a return to the golden age of solo sailing. A tribute to the traditional values of sailing.

Follow The Adventure

Competitors must bring cameras, satellite phones, and video cameras, which will be strictly controlled for the sole purpose of providing updates and allowing us to follow their adventure.

• Equipment allowed on board: digital cameras and drones WITHOUT GPS. Images will be collected at the following drop-off points: Canary Islands: 20 minutes, Hobart Gate: 1 hour, and end of race: 90 minutes.
• In addition to weekly safety briefings, two weekly interviews will be organized by satellite phone with any accredited media, each lasting 20 minutes.

27 Entrants, 13 Nationalities

Renowned skippers such as France’s Damien Guillou, one of the favourites in the previous edition, and Australia’s Mike Smith, determined to succeed in his third attempt.

The race will also welcome the first participant from “Generation Z,” 21-year-old Frenchman Louis Kerdelhué, as well as two young female sailors who would like to follow in the footsteps of Kirsten Neuschäfer.

Focus Skippers

Les Sables d’Olonne: Capital Of Solo Ocean Racing

For decades, the town has hosted iconic races, attracting sailors, enthusiasts, and international media.
The most famous of these races, the Vendée Globe, attracted more than 1.3 million visitors to Les Sables d’Olonne a few months ago.

The Mini Transat village is currently bringing the Place du Vendée Globe to life. This solo, unassisted transatlantic race on 6.50m sailboats is a veritable breeding ground for champions. The greatest skippers of the Vendée Globe have taken part in this race. The start from Les Sables d’Olonne to Guadeloupe will be given on September 21, 2025.

The city is also preparing to host the Vendée Arctique in June 2026. This race, which crosses the icy waters of the Arctic Circle, challenges sailors in extreme conditions, offering a taste of the difficulties of circumnavigating the globe.

Another qualifying race: the New York Vendée Les Sables, a real sprint across the North Atlantic. The crossing, known to be demanding at this time of year, confronts skippers with sometimes extreme conditions: storms, fast-moving low-pressure systems, and rough seas put the IMOCAs to the test. More than just a race, it is a real springboard for the Vendée Globe.

Whether in Optimists, Mini 6.50s, latest-generation foilers or old-school boats, Les Sables d’Olonne cultivates its unique spirit of adventure with these races that have made a name for themselves around the world and throughout the ages.

• In 1968, The Sunday Times Golden Globe Race was the first ever around-the-world solo yacht race.
• Known at the time as a voyage for madmen, lives were forever changed – yachts sank, a suicide occurred and of the nine entries only one man finished – Sir Robin Knox-Johnston becoming the first person ever to sail solo, nonstop and unassisted around the globe.
• No other race had occurred like it in half a century.

The Voyage of Madmen film released today on the Golden Globe Youtube channel is the story of Don McIntyre’s 50 year anniversary recreation of the infamous race and his quest to attract amateur sailors to compete in small boats, taking on the perils of the sea entirely against the odds. It’s a race without modern technological aids where actually surviving a non-stop lap of the world is the achievement. Of the 18 solo sailors to depart France in 2018 – five solitary skippers crossed the finish line – the final finisher spending 322 days alone at sea. This is the story of the longest sporting event in history. A display of brutal individualism by characters longing for a by-gone era who are hell-bent on recreating the longest, loneliest and most gruelling sports event on the planet.

This film is an independent production funded entirely and produced by Don McIntyre – “McIntyre Adventure”. For the past 10 Years, he has invested heavily in supporting adventure, conceiving and organising three around the world races – Golden Globe Race, Ocean Globe Race and the Mini Globe Race currently underway. All this without major sponsors. Solo sailor Jesse Martin directed the film and was primary cameraman.

The fourth edition of the McIntyre Golden Globe Race starts in 12 months on September 6th 2026 once again from Les Sables d’Olonne. In the past three editions of the Golden Globe only 9 sailors have finished, 43 tried. In 2026, 28 sailors are lining up for the start.