(Mar. 10, 2009; Day 121) - Crossing the finish line off Les Sables d’Olonne at
12h 43 19s GMT, Rich Wilson (USA) completed the 24,840 mile Vendée Globe solo
non-stop round the world race in ninth place from the original 30 starters.
Wilson finished 121 days 00 hours, 41 minutes and 19 seconds after leaving Les
Sables d’Olonne on Sunday November 9th. Wilson averaged 9.84 knots on the
water covering 28,590 miles. He sailed the 24,840 theoretical miles at an
average speed of 8.55 knots. Raphaël Dinelli (FRA) and Norbert Sedlacek (AUT)
are the remaining skippers still competing, now 557.6 nm and 980.2 nm from the
finish respectively.

Sailing Great American III, which was built in 1999 to a design by Bernard
Nivelt for Thierry Dubois, Wilson, of Marblehead, MA becomes only the second
American ever to finish the Vendée Globe after Bruce Schwab finished ninth
from 20 starters in the 2004-5 race on his Ocean Planet. Wilson safely
completed his boat’s third circumnavigation after Dubois sailed her in the
2000-1 Vendée Globe and then the 2002 Around Alone. -- Event website:
http://www.vendeeglobe.org/en