SAIL.SailMagazine

The 20 solo sailors preparing for the 28,050-mile Vendée Globe race around the world that begins tomorrow can breathe a momentary sigh of relief tonight, as the weather forecast for the start of their journey looks mild.

For the first time since 2002, the Volvo Ocean Race will include a boat with an all-female crew. Sponsored by the Swedish forestry company SCA, the all-female effort was both the first to sign up for the event and the first to confirm an order for one of the new 65-foot one-designs that will be used in the 2014-15 edition of the race.

U.S. Paralympic sailors Jen French and JP Creignou succeeded where the U.S. Olympic team fell short, winning silver in the SKUD-18 class at the 2012 Paralympic regatta in Weymouth, England.

Russell Coutts was over the moon. The first America’s Cup World Series had just wrapped up on San Francisco Bay, right where the 34th America’s Cup match will be contested in 2013.

Why does the Vendée Globe remain, in the eyes of many, the gold standard of global ocean races? Simply put, because of the purity of its challenge.