Thirty-three year old Samantha Davies has become the first Briton to finish The Artemis Transat 2008 solo race in Boston, USA. Samantha sailed her 60-foot monohull Roxy across the finish line at 23:00:51 GMT (19:00 local time) yesterday (26 May) in a time 15 days, 10 hours, 00 minutes and 51 seconds. For the last 24 hours, Sam battled a biting and gusty 25 to 35 knot headwind, but crossed the line with a huge smile.

Racing an older generation boat than the first four finishers in this classic solo transatlantic race, Davies held her nerve right through to end fighting off the challenge of the chasing pack. The only other female in the race, Britain’s Dee Caffari on board Aviva, is expected to arrive at 1400 GMT today (27 May)

Out of the 13 IMOCA boats that started The Artemis Transat on 11 May, only three Britons made the start line after Mike Golding, Brian Thompson and Jonny Malbon were forced to withdraw at the last minute. Samantha Davies, Dee Caffari (Aviva) and Steve White (Spirit of Weymouth) were the only competing British competitors, and Davies has put in a fantastic solo performance to bring home Roxy in 5th place.

Davies started The Artemis Transat in daunting circumstances having lost the use of her radar on the first night. A trip up the mast on day 4 of the race confirmed there was no chance of repairing the radar as the waterproof sealant had decayed allowing water to corrode the elements, at that point Davies knew she would be ‘sailing blind’ unable to identify shipping or the threat of icebergs on the other side of the Atlantic.

For further information on all competitors, visit www.theartemistransat.com .