An arrest warrant has been issued for a French ocean racing skipper who failed to turn up at Southampton Crown Court.

Mark Guillemot is wanted in connection with two charges of travelling the wrong way in the Dover Strait and Sunk Traffic Separation Schemes, during an attempt to break the Round Britain and Ireland record earlier this year.

Guillemot, skipper of Safran, was due in Southampton Crown Court on Tuesday 2 October.

The charges were brought by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency.

Guillemot was announced last week as one of the participants in the Vendée Globe, the single-handed, non-stop round the world race, which starts on November 10.

The MCA said: ‘An arrest warrant has been issued for a French skipper who failed to turn up in court. Mark Guillemot is wanted in connection with two charges of travelling the wrong way in the Dover Strait and Sunk Traffic Separation Schemes.’