Malvern rower’s world record attempt ends in heartbreak

A woman’s bid to set a world record by being part of a mixed team rowing 5,500 miles (8,851km) across the Indian Ocean has ended in heartbreak.

Lara Vafiadis and her three crew members were forced to abandon their challenge just 1,000 miles(1609km) from the finish line in Kenya, after setting off from Australia in July.

The 36-year-old would have also become the first woman to make the venture but a broken rudder left the crew stranded and at risk of capsizing.

“When I heard that rudder break… the whole team was just heartbroken and I think it will take a long time for us to get over it,” Vafiadis said.

She and her three crew mates are now on a cargo ship which came to their rescue and have a 10-day wait until they can get off at Cape Town, South Africa.

Vafiadis, from Malvern, Worcestershire, said it had been an “absolutely wild 24 hours” after their rudder broke on Saturday night at about 03:00 BST.

The crew spent about seven hours trying to fix the problem but nothing would work.