Ellen MacArthur and her 14-strong crew prepare for the start of the Jules Verne round-the-world challenge

The crew put their 110-foot catamaran, Kingfisher 2, through its paces off the coast of Lorient in France

MacArthur is hoping for the right weather conditions in January to launch her attempt on the race record

The current best time stands at 64 days and was set by Frenchman Bruno Peyron on board Orange in 2002

The start and finish of the 26,000-mile race is a line between Lizard Point in England and Ushant in France