Vendee Globe – Kojiro Shiraishi on Spirit of Yukoh forced to retire

by Vendee Globe on 4 Dec 2016 At 0240 UTC on Sunday December 4th, Kojiro Shiraishi, Skipper of Spirit of Yukoh contacted his shore team to tell them that he had dismasted. The boat Spirit of Yukoh was sailing in a moderate breeze (20 knots). Kojiro inside of the boat heard the sound of the mast breaking at around 0230 UTC.

Kojiro has since then climbed the mast and succesfully removed the broken part of the mast. Kojiro and the team came to the conclusion that it was impossible to repair this damage and there were too many risks to allow him to continue in these conditions. He decided to retire from the race at 0830 UTC.
Kojiro is now safely heading for Cape Town.

Kojiro's words:
'At 0330 UTC, I heard the mast break from inside of the boat. I quickly went outside to check the damage but the mast had broken in half above the second spreader. I was able to remove the broken piece and I will need to go up again to do some cleaning. The wind was 20 knots at the time I dismasted. I'm okay. I don't need any assistance, and I am heading for Cape Town. I am sorry for everyone who supported me in this journey and would like to particularly thank my sponsors for their kind support.'

All the sponsors for this project have said that they are relieved that Kojiro was not injured during this incident. They are all looking forward to assisting Kojiro in his future adventures.