I was a bit shocked today when I saw Jean-Pierre Dick, who has just won the Barcelona World Race with Kerryman Damian Foxall. Shocked because this tall, athletic man looked so thin and so exhausted.

It turns out that JP had planned for 84 days at sea, and it took 92 and he and Foxall existed during the last few days at sea on a diet of soup and water. He says he has lost 10kg, and a good deal of muscle mass in his legs.

In contrast, I have to say that Alex and Capey on Hugo Boss look quite well fed.

This photo shows the punishment poor JP’s hands have taken. If you look closely you can see what has been a very nasty lesion on his right middle finger. He admits it was very sore in the cold conditions of the Southern Ocean, but just shrugs and says “the halyards are getting thinner and thinner.”