David Hosking skippered the six rowers of Team Hallin across the ocean in just under 32 days – beating the previous record for the 3,000-mile crossing by one day.
But yesterday rival boat the Sara G landed with a better time, taking the title from Mr Hosking’s celebrating crew.
Team Hallin, who are aiming to raise £60,000 for armed forces charity Combat Stress, set off from Tenerife in their trimaran boat Hallin Marine on January 6.
Hours after landing Mr Hosking, a 55-year-old former Royal Navy commander from Wilton Crescent, said: “Everyone has been amazing, our bodies are wrecked. It was stunning teamwork that saw us set a new world record, and the culmination of two years of planning.”
And on the day of arrival crew member Chris Covey proposed to his girlfriend Susie Easton, surprising her with a ring he had carried with him for the whole voyage.
The Sara G, which had six crew members from Britain, Malta and Ireland, left from Tarfaya in Morocco on January 5, but as the two boats went by different routes across the ocean, their times were used to find average speeds.
This calculation handed the Sara G an average speed of 3.9mph – compared to Team Hallin’s 3.4mph – the record and the Ocean Rowing blue riband trophy, which is adjudicated by the Ocean Rowing Society.
Team Hallin Atlantic crossing world record video.
