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Sail of the Century. One-Armed Skipper’s Global Odyssey

  • Writer: Chris McMillan
    Chris McMillan
  • Jun 25
  • 1 min read

Sixth Tone


23rd June 2025


Sail of the Century. One-Armed Skipper’s Global Odyssey


Translator: Vincent Chow; editors: Wang Juyi and Hao Qibao.


After “dancing with death” in a solo around-the-world race, Chinese sailor Xu Jingkun aims to inspire a new generation of dreamers.


Chinese skipper Xu Jingkun clearly recalls the day he first learned about the Vendée Globe, a solo, nonstop, around-the-world sailing race that starts and finishes on the west coast of France. It was 2007, he was 17 years old, and his eye was drawn to a magazine cover story while visiting New York.


But it wasn’t the challenge of the gruelling race that struck him — it was the yachts. Or, as he calls them, “the beasts.”


In February this year, Xu fulfilled his “ultimate dream” by becoming the first Chinese sailor — and only the 100th in history — to complete the Vendée Globe, after spending almost 100 days sailing a secondhand IMOCA 60 yacht 27,616 nautical miles. What makes the feat even more impressive is that Xu has only one arm.


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