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Englishwoman Sets a Sailing Record
February 8, 2005

Ellen MacArthur yesterday became the fastest person to sail solo around the
world after enduring stormy seas, 65-mile-an-hour winds, a broken sail, burns,
braises, and exhaustion - even a close encounter with a whale.
MacArthur, a 28-year-old Englishwoman, completed the 26,000-mile
circumnavigation by crossing an imaginary finishing line between Ushant, France,
and Cornwall, on the south coast of England. Her final time was 71 days, 14 hours,
18 minutes, and 33 seconds. Her 75-fost trimaran, В & Q, broke the record set by
Francis Joyon, who finished in 72 days, 22 hours, 54 minutes, and 22 seconds in
February 2004
Later, she told her team, 'I feel absolutely exhausted but I'm elated to be here.
The whole voyage has been very draining, and there's a lot of things going round
in my head. But it's great that I can finally switch my brain off and relax in the
company of others, which I've really missed.'
British Prime Minister Tony Blair and Queen Elizabeth II both paid tribute to
MacArthur. French President Jacques Chirac, in whose country MacArthur is
already a household name, also sent his congratulations.
MacArthur's journey began on November 28, and from then on, she slept an
average of 30 minutes at a time and four hours in any day. She reheated freeze-
dried meals on a single burner stove while living in an area measuring 5 feet by 6
feet. Her water supply was desalinated from the sea.
She spent Christmas Day in a storm, but after crossing the half-way mark at
Cape Horn on New Year Eve, she built a four-day lead on the pace set by rival
Francis Joyon. A week later, during the worst storms MacArthur's career, she
badly burned her arm on a generator.
Buffeted by heavy storms in the southern ocean, MacArthur slipped a day
behind Joyon. By late January she was back in contention after crossing the equator. Her 75-foot boat hit a large fish and nearly struck a whale and then light
winds threatened. But a storm helped push her back into the lead.
Task 1 Answer the questions.
1 On which date did Ellen Mac Arthur break the record?_____________________
2 Did she sail with a team?____________________________________________
3 What was the name of the boat?_______________________________________
4 Where did the race end?_____________________________________________
5 What kind of animal did she nearly hit?_________________________________
6 How did she feel when she arrived home?_______________________________
7 What had she missed?______________________________________________
8 How well known is she in France?_____________________________________
9 What kind of food did she eat?________________________________________
10
When did she reach the halfway mark?
________________________________
11
Where was she when she fell behind the pace set by Joy on?
_______________
12
What eventually helped her to gain speed?
_____________________________