Solo sailor Mike Golding celebrated Christmas in style by arriving four miles of Fremantle, in Western Australia, at 15 minutes to midnight GMT or 0845 on Christmas Day in Oz.
It was hot and sunny and blowing 25 knots as his jury-rigged Ecover 3 hove into view. His Vendee Globe shore team were leaving to rendezvous with him. No doubt wife, Andrea, and son, Soren, tucked up in bed in the UK, were relieved he’s safely on dry land.
Meanwhile, solo sailor Sam Davies reported on Christmas Eve that life on board Roxy was a rollercoaster. ‘Doing anything much is just too dangerous as she is jumping around so much. I am sitting in my sleeping bag, watching the Albatross circle around the boat through my porthole, and the waves come crashing over the deck into the cockpit. A little bit of music, reading, sleeping, as the miles tick by towards Cape Horn.
‘I opened my Christmas dinner package today. My boyfriend Romain has prepared a super meal for me – a delicious fish soup, with rouille and croutons! Yummy. I can’t wait. The only thing is that I think it is almost impossible to eat soup in these conditions! I might have to postpone my Christmas dinner to when its calmed down a bit, otherwise I will be wearing more of it than eating it!’
French solo sailor Yann Elies, who was rescued from his yacht by the Australian Navy after breaking his leg is spending Christmas in the Perth hospital, where his leg has been pinned.
Some of his support team, headed by Philippe Laot, will spend Christmas on a power boat heading south from Perth to try to recove Yann’s boat, Generali which was last located drifting northwards, 700 miles south of the coast of Australia. The rest of the competitors are charging east.

Latest rankings are:
1. Michel Desjoyeaux (Foncia) at 10963.5 miles
2. Roland Jourdain (Veolia Environnement) at 60.1 miles
3. Seb Josse (BT) at 139.7 miles
4. Jean Le Cam (VM Matériaux) at 149.4 miles
5. Armel Le Cléac’h (Brit Air) 371.7 miles
Selected International
8. Sam Davies, GBR, (ROXY) at 1509.3 miles
10. Brian Thompson, GBR, (Bahrain Team Pindar) at 1898.4 miles
11. Dee Caffari, GBR, (AVIVA) at 2016.6 miles
13. Steve White, GBR, (Toe in the Water) at 2589.4 miles
14. Johnny Malbon, GBR, (Artemis) at 3106.8 miles
15. Rich Wilson, USA, (Great American III) at 3183.5 miles
16. Derek Hatfield, CAN, (Algimouss Spirit of Canada) at 3307.9 miles