\n
\nThe ocean has always been a place of solitude for Indian sailor Abhilash Tomy.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\nOn Sunday, the former navy commander will return to sea as he sets off on his second attempt at the world\u2019s toughest and longest sailboat competition, the Golden Globe Race.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\u201cWhen I am at sea, there are no distractions, no external stimulations\u2026I always look forward to it,\u201d 43-year-old Tomy told Arab News during an interview via Zoom.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\nThe solo, non-stop, around-the-world yacht race, which was first held in 1968-1969 as the \u201cSunday Times Golden Globe Race,\u201d made a welcome return in 2018 on its 50th anniversary as a tribute to the original event and its achievements.<\/p>\n
\nFor its third edition, kicking off on Sept. 4, 2022, competitors will stick to the established rules of using basic boats and equipment and avoiding modern technology to complete their journeys. \u00a0<\/p>\n
\nFollowing the exact route traveled in the first edition, sailors will set off from Les Sables-d\u2019Olonne in France and make their way around the world via five Great Capes before returning to the starting point.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\u201cI will be out of touch with my kid and my family for around eight to nine months, but it\u2019s an added anxiety that you just come to terms with,\u201d said Tomy.<\/p>\n
\n\u201cIf a negative thought enters your mind, it stays there for many days,\u201d he said. \u201cSo, I make a conscious effort to keep my mind healthy during those many months of solitude.\u201d<\/p>\n
\nLooking back at his first attempt at the GGR in 2018, a feat that nearly killed him, Tomy believes the upcoming race is his second chance to achieve one of his greatest dreams. \u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\u201cThe 2018 GGR was a very difficult time, but I never blamed the sea for what happened.<\/p>\n
\n\u201cI was in third position when the storm happened, and out of the three boats that encountered this storm, two were lost,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\nTomy was sailing the Thuraya, an exact replica of the boat Suhaili used by the race\u2019s first winner of 1968, Sir Robin Knox Johnston, when he faced an extreme storm that dismantled his yacht 80 days into the race.<\/p>\n
\n\u201cI had a couple of knockdowns in the storm.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\u201cThe first knockdown broke my mizzen boom, a few antennas and the wind generator,\u201d he said. \u201cThe boat was a complete mess inside.\u201d<\/p>\n
\nWhile hand steering the boat in rocky waters halfway between Australia and South Africa, Tomy encountered severe winds that flung him into the water, separating him from his boat and pushing him deep underwater.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\u201cWhen the boat straightened, I was on top of the mizzen mast, which is about 9 meters high. From there, I fell, my back hit the boom and that\u2019s when I fractured my spine,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\nTomy, who was not aware of the extent of his injury at the time, tried to clean up his boat, repeatedly attempting to stand up before finally buckling at the knees.<\/p>\n
\n\u201cWhile I was injured and lying in the bunk for three and a half days, I was already making plans to take part in the next GGR,\u201d said Tomy.<\/p>\n
\nAfter reaching out to the race control and turning his emergency position-indicating radio beacon on, he was finally rescued on day 83 of the race and underwent a two-day spinal surgery over a week later.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\nHis short journey at the GGR 2018, however, came five years after one of his life\u2019s greatest accomplishments.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\nOn March 31, 2013, Tomy became the first Indian and second Asian to complete a solo non-stop circumnavigation around the world on a boat.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\nSailing 23,000 nautical miles from India, the championed sailor crossed the Indian, Southern Pacific and Atlantic oceans, rounding three Great Capes: Cape Leeuwin in Australia, Cape Horn in South America and Cape of Good Hope in Africa.<\/p>\n
\nAfter 151 days at sea, Tomy was greeted with a ceremonial reception by Shri Pranab Mukherjee, the president of India at the time. \u00a0<\/p>\n
\nThis time around, Tomy aims to complete his sail around the world for the second time and cross the GGR finish line, traveling close to 56,000 km.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\u201cI\u2019ve decided that if at all I go into a similar storm, I am going to stay inside the boat and try to save myself at the very least,\u201d he told Arab News.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\nSince his accident, Tomy has undergone extensive physiotherapy to rebuild his strength and improve his fitness levels for the 2022 race.<\/p>\n
\nHe also retired from the Indian navy after serving for 24 years, leaving an environment he was very familiar with, having spent much of his childhood on bases across the country since his father was in the Naval Police.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\u201cIt was important that I transitioned, but it was a very emotional moment for me,\u201d Tomy said. \u201cYou really can\u2019t take the navy out of me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\nThis year, Tomy has solely focused on preparing for the GGR 2022, recently crossing the English Channel over a distance of 2,000 nautical miles to qualify for the race.<\/p>\n
\nOn Sunday, he will be sailing a UAE-flagged boat sponsored by Bayanat, an AI-powered geospatial intelligence company, and contributing to the company\u2019s ongoing scientific work.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\u201cThis race takes you to the corners of the Earth that are not really visited by ships or humans, and I am going to be collecting water samples all along the way so that Bayanat can eventually study the microplastic content in them,\u201d said Tomy.<\/p>\n
\nThe samples will be sent to one of the company\u2019s healthcare labs to undergo multiple assessments, Hasan Hosani, CEO of Bayanat, told Arab News.<\/p>\n
\n\u201cThe target is to publish the data and contribute to learning more about the environment,\u201d said Hosani.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\nIn parallel, the data collection company will also utilize satellite imagery and synthetic aperture radars to capture images of various locations throughout Tomy\u2019s journey in the GGR.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\u201cWe will be creating an imagery book of captured images across the globe in different resolutions and angles using remote sensing once the race is complete,\u201d said Hosani.<\/p>\n
\nPraising Tomy\u2019s passion for sailing and perseverance, Hosani ensures that Bayanat\u2019s tasks will not interfere with his focus on completing the race safely \u2014 and possibly winning it. \u00a0<\/p>\n
\nEagerly looking forward to his time at sea, Tomy says he is not worried about feeling bored.<\/p>\n
\n\u201cSailing a boat is mostly like running a kitchen; every day you have some repairs to do and chores to keep up with,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\nAccording to him, sailing is a sport that brings about a lot of character development.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\u201cIt makes you patient, self-sufficient and gives you time to read books,\u201d said Tomy. \u201cI will have a lot of work to do.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\n
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