 Mr Golding is a favourite to win in his 60ft �1.5m yacht Ecover |
A fireman whose first attempt to sail solo around the world was wrecked when his mast broke within hours has set off to try to achieve his dream again. Mike Golding, 44, from Southampton, is one of the favourites to win the Vendee Globe race, which began on Sunday.
Twenty competitors leave Les Sables D'Olonne, west France, on a 26,000-mile course expected to take three months.
The other Britons taking part are Alex Thomson from Gosport near Portsmouth, and Conrad Humphries, from Plymouth.
The biennial race, which is in its fifth edition, will see them pass the southern tips of Africa, Australia and South America.
 |  Because of the length of the Vendee you need an element of luck  |
If Mr Golding finishes first in his �1.5m 60ft yacht Ecover, he will be the first Briton to do so.
He came seventh in 2000/2001 after he was forced to return to port to fix a broken mast, setting off again eight days later.
Ellen MacArthur came second in the same race, making the 24-year-old from the Isle of Wight the fastest woman and youngest person to circumnavigate the globe.
Before setting off this year, Mr Golding said: "I believe I can win this race with this boat.
"But the reality is that because of the length of the Vendee you need an element of luck."
One-Minute World News 
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