News reports reveal today that the storm, which has been following the Team Origin crew since their departure on Wednesday (22 October), has caused damage to the 99-foot monohull Virgin Money.

Speaking to the television programme GMTV, Sir Richard Branson explained that the Atlantic storm “may have been too much for the boat and we may have pushed it too hard”.

“We were doing very good until recently when we had a massive wave hit us from behind. It literally took one of our life craft with it. The storm has also taken out the spinnaker and ripped the main sail so we’ll have to decide whether it can be mended and whether we’ve still got a chance of making the record.”

The billionaire adventurer had high praise for his crew of 30, which includes British gold medallist Ben Ainslie, adding that “if anybody can sort these things out, these guys can.”

The team plans to closely monitor the weather over the next few hours, and assess the risks of continuing.