Alan Wynne-Thomas, born in 1941 in Carmarthen, Wales and died on 28 September 2008, is a British offshore sailor and navigator. He crossed the Atlantic eleven times, three of them solo.

Biography

After graduating from the

London School of Economics , mottoeng = To understand the causes of things , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £240.8 million (2021) , budget = £391.1 millio ...

, he set up his own successful company specializing in health software. He plays rugby, successively in the clubs of Maesteg,

Saracens F.C. Saracens Rugby Club () are an English professional rugby union club based in North London, England. As of the current 2022–23 season, they compete in Premiership Rugby, the highest tier competition in English rugby, as well as the domestic P ...

and Otago. In 1992, he took part in the English Transat, which he finished in third place in the category of monohulls and seventh in the general classification. That same year, he competed in the second edition of the

1992–1993 Vendée Globe The 1992–1993 Vendée Globe is a non-stop solo Round the World Yacht Race for IMOCA 50 and IMOCA 60 class yachts this is the second edition of the race starting on the 22nd November 1992 from Les Sables-d'Olonne. Summary The second race attracte ...

aboard his yacht ''Cardiff Discovery''. Between the

Kerguelen Islands The Kerguelen Islands ( or ; in French commonly ' but officially ', ), also known as the Desolation Islands (' in French), are a group of islands in the sub-Antarctic constituting one of the two exposed parts of the Kerguelen Plateau, a large ...

and

Heard Island The Territory of Heard Island and McDonald Islands (HIMI) is an Australian external territory comprising a volcanic group of mostly barren Antarctic islands, about two-thirds of the way from Madagascar to Antarctica. The group's overall size ...

, his boat capsized, but righted itself, he fells and thinks he has broken his ribs. He gives up and slows down in Hobart, where an X-ray will reveal that six of his ribs are actually broken.

Personal life

He married first time with Margaret with whom he had two sons Rhian and Rhidian. He then marries Jill who gives him two daughters Ellen and Isla. He died of cancer at the age of 67.

References

1941 births 2008 deaths British male sailors (sport) Sportspeople from Carmarthen Alumni of the London School of Economics Saracens F.C. players Maesteg RFC players Otago rugby union players IMOCA 60 class sailors British Vendee Globe sailors 1992 Vendee Globe sailors Welsh rugby union players {{UK-yachtracing-bio-stub