Oliver Hicks back on dry land for the first time in 124 days

Oliver Hicks, 23, of Thorpeness in Suffolk, crossed the official finishing line at Bishop's Rock lighthouse off the Isles of Scilly at 1056BST.

He reached landfall in the islands later on Wednesday afternoon.

Rowing from New Jersey in the US, he took a week longer than Frenchman Maud Fontenay, whose crossing from Canada to France in 2003 lasted 117 days.

After being welcomed by islanders and his family on the Isles of Scilly - and showing his work-worn hands - he climbed back into his boat to row to Falmouth for a mainland welcome and a reception on Friday.

'Buoyant spirits'

Mr Hicks' father Charlie said from a support boat that his son had been hit by the least helpful weather conditions in the Atlantic for 100 years.

His biggest problem had been that the prevailing winds were against him for most of the journey.

"But the main thing is the achievement, how long he took does not really matter," his father added.

Despite the slow progress, Mr Hicks had been in "pretty buoyant spirits all the way across".

During the crossing Mr Hicks was re-supplied en route by a passing Royal Navy warship HMS Cumberland when food was running low.