Cornwall round-world sailor glues mainsail back together

A sailor from Cornwall has repaired his mainsail after it was ripped apart during the Vendee Globe, a non-stop race around the world.

The tear happened on Monday as Sam Goodchild’s yacht Vulnerable’s sail swung from side to side twice off the Azores while he was in fifth place.

Goodchild, 35, from Falmouth, said he was “not giving up” and on Wednesday reported that he had repaired the mainsail and battens using 14 cartridges of glue, patches and carbon reinforcing plates.

In a post on his social media channels, the sailor said he was “not going to cry victory just yet”, but said the mainsail “feels good”.

Goodchild, who sat in seventh place on Wednesday, said he was advised on the repair remotely by his boat captain Robin Salmon, in France.

On Tuesday night, the sailor said: “I think tomorrow morning we should be ready to hoist.

“I’ve got a bit of tidying up to do, the boat’s a complete mess. We should be ready to hoist and try it out, see how it goes.”

Goodchild is among 34 sailors left in the race after six abandonments including that of Dorset sailor Pip Hare, whose boat was dismasted.