Is it over for The Famous Project CIC?

With an all-women crew, The Famous Project CIC set out on November 29 to record the fastest crewed, non-stop, unassisted circumnavigation of the globe and claim the Jules Verne Trophy. But after falling far behind the winning pace, their sights shifted to establishing a reference time by an all-women crew, but now that might not happen either.

Problems with the main halyard hook on the 103-foot trimaran IDEC SPORT is preventing the mainsail from being raised beyond the second reef. A stop for repairs in South Africa would void their effort, so the initial decision was to sail on, albeit at a slower pace. That decision was revealed on November 14, but a day later the tracker has the team aiming toward Cape Town.

At over 3100 nm behind record pace, and positioned 380 nm southwest of the Cape, there’s no update yet on their plans. – Details