T
he advancement of women
in offshore sailing has
taken another step forward
this month. Sun Hung
Kai/Scallywag won the
MelbournetoHongKongLegofthe
2017-18 Volvo Ocean Race after newly
appointed navigator Libby Greenhalgh
recommended a radical routing, which
tooktheboatfromthebackofthefleetto
the front with a 120nm gain in 48 hours.
Scallywag navigator Antonio Fontes
hadbrokenhisarmontheCapeTownto
MelbournelegandskipperDavidWitt
asked Libby Greenhalgh, the former
Team SCA navigator, to step in. The
rarely sailed 5,600nm leg is a navigator’s
nightmare,withalotofcoastalsailing,
island chains, trade winds, a challenging
doldrums crossing, and a lot of traffic
andWittneededasafepairofhands.
Greenhalgh, a meteorologist with
a Geophysical Sciences degree andHowmuchimpactisthecurrentVolvoOceanRace
having on opportunites for women sailors?JEDDA MURPHY
andROB KOTHEturnthespotlightonthefemalestars
oftheoffshoreworldtogettheirperspectives
ON THE PACE
a Masters in Applied Meteorology,
worked for the British Met Office, before
becoming the British Olympic Sailing
Team Meteorologist in 2007, supporting
the team at the 2008 and 2012 Olympic
Games and for two years towards Rio
2016, until she joined Team SCA in 2014.
An experienced blue water navigator,
neverafraidtobreakfromthefleet,she
favours follow-the-weather decisions
over follow-the-leader. On the first
leg of the 2014-15 VOR, she grasped
an opportunity and took SCA to the
Spanish shore and the boat led the fleet
outoftheGibraltarStraits–similarly
when SCA won the eighth 647nm
stage, from Lisbon to Lorient.
And now to Scallywag. Greenhalgh
takesupthestory:“IwasinAustralia
for the Sydney-Hobart race and joined
theteamtwodaysbeforethefleetleft
Melbourne. We did not have a great
start and heading north the offshoreOFFSHORE GENDER EQUALITY
KONRAD FROST/VOLVO OCEAN RACE
March 2018 Yachts & Yachting 19