39-year-old Kirsten Neuschäfer has become the first woman to win a solo, round-the-world yacht race.

 

39-year-old Kirsten Neuschäfer has become the first woman to win a solo, round-the-world yacht race.  The South African sailor crossed the finish line off the French coast on Thursday after spending just over 235 days at sea. Neuschäfer won the Golden Globe Race, a yachting competition that does not allow GPS, internet weather forecasts, or autopilot. The strict requirements are intended to replicate the conditions of the original race, held between 1968 and 1969. Neuschäfer won despite diverting her course to rescue a Finnish competitor, Tapio Lehtinen, whose boat sank during the race. After winning the race, Neuschäfer was greeted by Catherine Chabaud who completed the Vendée Globe competition in 1997. Chabaud was the first female sailor to race solo nonstop around the world without assistance.