Irishman awarded for attempting to rescue Indian Navy officer

Shubhadeep Choudhury                                                                           
Tribune News Service
Kolkata, February 20

When Abhilash Tomy, the Indian Navy officer who was a participant in the 2018 Golden Globe Race (GGR), found himself stranded in the middle of the Southern Ocean after his sailboat “Thuriya” was hit by a storm, Irishman Gregor McGuckin, a fellow competitor, made a daring rescue attempt.

In a press release last evening, GGR  informed that McGuckin has been awarded the Rod Stephens Seamanship Trophy by the Cruising Club of America (CCA) for his attempted rescue of Tomy.

“McGuckin and Tomy had both dismasted in the same hurricane in the Southern Ocean, McGuckin jury-rigged and hand-steered his boat for four days in order to be on-site to assist with the rescue, if required, up to within 25 miles of his fellow competitor. McGuckin did not declare an emergency for himself, despite being rolled over and losing his mast”, GGR stated.

Tomy, whose dire situation had triggered a nation-wide alarm, was finally rescued by a French fishing vessel ‘Osiris’ on September 24, 2018, after the Indian Navy Commander spent gruelling four days stranded in the middle of treacherous seas in an injured condition.

The same vessel later picked up McGuckin and took them both to Amsterdam Island.

The 2018 GGR was an around-the-world sailing race which started on July 1, 2018, from Les Sables-d’Olonne, France. The competition was the second edition and celebrated the 50th anniversary of the original Sunday Times Golden Globe Race. It featured boats similar to those used at that time.

The Rod Stephens Seamanship Trophy is awarded by CCA for an act of seamanship that significantly contributes to the safety of a yacht or one or more individuals at sea.

Both Tomy and McGuckin were some 1,900 miles west of Cape Leeuwin, West Australia when they were hit by the storm.

When Tomy became incommunicado, prompting the organisers to sound a red alert, McGuckin informed the race’s organisers that he was repairing his boat and would head towards Tomy’s position once the repairs were complete.

The award, along with several other CCA awards, will be presented on March 6 at CCA’s Annual Awards Dinner at New York Yacht Club.