With only 18 boats left to finish, the winners of some of the special awards can now be determined, including those for the classics, the Sparkman and Stephens Trophy for the best yacht of that design, which has been claimed by the S&S Yawl Lulotte owned by Ben Morris. Also winning a special prize this year is Carina II, which will take home the Dorade Cup for the best IRC corrected time for a classic yacht. 

Twenty years ago the Royal Ocean Racing Club allowed multihulls to participate in the Rolex Fastnet Race. Today, while the numbers remain relatively small compared to the giant IRC fleets, the quality and diversity of the multihull fleet is of note.

An American VO70 has continued its phenomenal winning streak to claim the Fastnet Challenge Cup, the overall prize for the 2019 Rolex Fastnet Race. David and Peter Askew, aboard their VO70 Wizard, came out on top under IRC corrected time, beating French boat builder Nicolas Groleau’s perennial entry on their canting keel Mach 45 Bretagne Telecom by 45 minutes. This was despite the 2019 race being the Askew’s first attempt at the Royal Ocean Racing Club’s pinnacle 600 mile offshore.

Kai Hockley, aged 13 along with Jaden Owusu and Christopher-Joel Fredrick, both aged 14, are not just the youngest crew taking part in the 2019 Rolex Fastnet Race but they have also undertaken one of the most intense programmes to prepare for the event. Along with six other 18-and-unders, they have worked exceptionally hard to be ready to crew an ex-Admiral’s Cupper Scaramouche, built in 1981, in this, the toughest of races.

Wednesday 7 August - IRC Three

For the third time since 2013 Alexis Loison has won both class and IRC Two-Handed in the Rolex Fastnet Race, this time racing with the boat builder Jean-Pierre Kelbert on the brand new JPK 10.30 Léon.

Wednesday 7 Aug - IRC Four

With 87 starters, IRC Four is the largest class racing in the 2019 Rolex Fastnet Race. The vast majority of the sailors are passionate amateurs fulfilling their dream of racing in the Rolex Fastnet Race. As of Wednesday morning, after five days of racing, only ten boats from IRC Four had finished the race, however none of the teams still racing can beat Noel Racine's JPK 10.10 Foggy Dew. Astonishingly, out of Racine's eight Fastnet Races, he has won class four times. It is no surprise that the grandmaster from Le Havre has also won class in the last four consecutive RORC Season's Points Championships.

Fresh footage from the course of the Rolex Fastnet Race.

See the video below:© ROLEX

One of the tightest competitions in the 48^th Rolex Fastnet Race was between the 18 Class40s. While they, like the IMOCA 60s, are due to be competing in this autumn’s Transat Jacques Vabre these box rule based fliers, the most successful 40ft racing yachts of all time (with hulls 158 and 159 soon to launch), were being sailed fully crewed (ie four up) to class rules, boat-on-boat, independent of the IRC fleet.

The JPK 11.80 Courrier Recommandé arrived at 11:23:50 this morning, another barnstorming performance by the Fastnet magician Géry Trentesaux. Time and again the Frenchman has proven that he understands this race perhaps better than any other as he rounds off his high-level racing career with almost certain victory in IRC Two.

Tuesday 6 August - IRC One

Just when we thought this was looking a benefit race for the bigger boats, last night’s arrivals and previous leaders of IRC One - Tonnerre de Glen and Ino XXX - have been upstaged by two smaller rivals - L’Ange de Milon and Lann Ael 2 - who moored up in Plymouth around midday today.

The Fastnet Race Village is a hive of activity and sailors in the 48^th edition of the Rolex Fastnet Race return from their endeavours. Every team has their story and many are greeted by friends and family who have been watching the race unfold.

Like a tap slowly being turned on, the quantity of Rolex Fastnet Race boats arriving in Plymouth has been steadily increasing since yesterday afternoon, with crews clambering off boats into the welcoming arms of the race office before heading for a beer in the race village.