Former solo skippers prowling the docks of Les Sables d’Olonne include the irrepressible Nick Moloney. Moloney is still proudly at the helm – but this time of a McLaren pushchair containing his eight-month old daughter.

Moloney claims to be quite nonplussed at his emotions seeing the fleet this time. He has absolutely no desire to be going off for three months to race round the world leaving baby Eva behind and says the feeling is really strange.

“People used to say ‘I don’t know how you do this, I couldn’t’ and I never understood that. I always thought I could do anything. But now this is something I just can’t do.”

Typically Aussie, though, Moloney is keeping his options open for a solo challenge at a more difficult stage of childrearing.