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The Hugo Boss yacht abandoned by Alex Thomson 10 years ago is found

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The IMOCA 60 Hugo Boss yacht, which skipper Alex Thomson abandoned during the 2006-2007 Velux 5 Oceans Race, has been found in Patagonia. The boat washed up on the coast of Bernardo O'Higgins National Park in Chile. She was discovered by Cristian Donoso during a kayaking expedition. Donoso is the winner of the Rolex Awards for Enterprise.

Alex Thomson's yacht, which he left a thousand kilometers south of the South African coast, traveled more than 20,000 kilometers, crossed the Indian and Pacific Oceans, and sailed along the southern coast of Saudi Arabia, India, Australia and New Zealand before finally reaching land.

Alex Thomson said his team will contact local authorities and help get IMOCA 60 off the coast of Bernardo O'Higgins National Park.

Ten years ago, a British yachtsman was forced to abandon the boat due to the failure of her keel structure. The yacht capsized 33 days after the start of the first leg of the Velux 5 Oceans race, having sailed 7,000 miles in the race. Thomson found himself alone on a life raft in a gale with winds reaching 50 knots, a thousand miles offshore and out of the reach of rescue services.

His only hope for rescue was friend and race rival Mike Golding. Golding turned his boat around and traveled nearly 100 miles in an eight-point storm to pick up Thomson. Golding's boat's mast later broke in two places and the two sailors had to call the umpire's reebe which towed the boat to Cape Town.

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