British sailor says he ‘didn’t know what all the fuss was about’ after becoming first to solo circumnavigate the globe

A British sailor who became the first man to solo circumnavigate the globe without stopping has said he “didn’t know what all the fuss was about”.

Sir Robin Knox-Johnston, 86, made history in 1969 when he returned to Falmouth after spending 312 days at sea to complete the feat.

Looking back 56 years later, Sir Robin told PA Real Life that the event did not define his life and he was “always thinking forward”.

He has since circumnavigated the globe three more times, breaking the world record for the fastest time in 1994, and becoming the oldest person to do it solo in 2007 – a voyage he undertook because two friends “said I couldn’t manage it in that boat”.

Sir Robin continues to sail, saying that if there is a good enough reason, despite his age, he would undertake just about any voyage.

“When you’re sailing well and the seas are warm and blue, the clouds fluffy and there’s a good wind that’s not too strong, I wouldn’t exchange my position with anyone on earth,” he said.

“I just sit there and lap it up. I love it.

“Why do the easy things in life? Satisfaction comes from achieving something difficult. As far as we know we’ve got one life. Don’t paint it in pastel colours. Get out there and enjoy it.”

Though neither of Sir Robin’s parents were sailors, his godfather was a captain in the Navy and other members of the extended family were at sea.

He said he knew he wanted to be a sailor aged eight, reflecting that “in many ways, my entire life was dictated by an eight-year-old”.

Six years later, in 1953, Sir Robin peered up at a Hiscocks vessel that had circumnavigated the globe at the first International Boat Show.

“I said to myself, ‘one day I’ll sail around the world’.”

Between September 19 to 28 this year, Sir Robin is returning to the show, which has been in Southampton since 1969, to speak and inspire others just as he was inspired all those years ago.

Leaving school, Sir Robin says he was meant to go to Oxbridge but decided to get an apprenticeship in the Merchant Navy instead, much to the frustration of his headmaster.

“It was one of the best things I ever did,” he said.

“I grew three inches and put on three stone. But most of all, I learnt a trade. I’ve always been grateful. They were lessons of life and gave me a greater understanding of people.”

Over the following 12 years, Sir Robin honed his seamanship.

In 1967, British sailor Francis Chichester completed the fastest recorded circumnavigation – nine months and a day – and the longest non-stop voyage.

However, he docked in Australia to refit his boat.

“That left one thing to do,” Sir Robin remembers. “Sail around without stopping.”

He tried to secure sponsorship for the voyage but after a dismissive write-up in the press, which suggested he was not a good enough sailor, he failed to get sufficient backing to buy a new boat.

As a result, he decided to sail in Suhaili, his own vessel, which he knew intimately.

The only sponsorship he had was 120 cans of Tennent’s lager and £5 from Cadbury (roughly £75 in today’s money).

“I didn’t have any big thoughts about it. I was going anyway. I’d made up my mind and that was it,” he said.

“I was setting out to double the record for longest non-stop voyage. People wrote me off but didn’t realise how well trained we were in the Merchant Navy. You’ve got to believe in yourself.

“My mother went very quiet when I told her. I don’t know why she was so upset. She had four sons, so could afford to lose one.”

Sir Robin set off in June 1968, one of nine contestants in the Gold Globe Trophy.

He had jaundice at the time but refused to see a doctor because he knew he would be taken to hospital, causing him to miss his start date.

“It made me feel tired and you know full well that the cure is rest so I couldn’t sail very aggressively for the first month,” he said.

He spent the next 312 days at sea, without stopping, in becoming the first man to non-stop circumnavigate the globe.

“I had to learn to deal with 80ft waves but once I got that, I was fine,” he said.

“There were many storms of course but the worst was off Cape Horn which Nasa said was a perfect storm.

“I was too busy to think about what would happen if the boat was chopped up by the waves. You’re one man in a liferaft. That’s it.”

Sir Robin says he knew he had won the race 10 days before landing in Falmouth. All the other contestants had failed to complete the journey.

“I thought I’d get back, say hi, have a bath and a steak, and that would be it,” he said.

“All I thought was ‘I’m back’. I was looking forward to seeing the family and friends. That was it really. It’s a dream, this is me and my life, what’s all the fuss about?

“The first thing I had to check was if I could walk, as you don’t use your legs at sea. I went 200 yards before my ankles gave out.”

Sir Robin did not reflect on the journey too much afterwards, preferring to focus on the future.

“That was all behind me. I’m always thinking forward. I was 30 and needed to earn money, I could hardly retire,” he said.

He found work in the yachting industry and continued sailing, entering and winning multiple races in the decades that followed.

In 1994, he circumnavigated the world again, this time with a crew, breaking the record for fastest time and holding it for three years.

Then in 2007, aged 67, he completed a second solo circumnavigation.

The voyage was “fun”, though he says the modern technology was temperamental and frustrating because he was often unable to fix it.

“Two friends said I couldn’t manage that boat so I did it to prove I could.”

He has no plans for another journey but says he would take on any “if there was a good reason for it”.

Despite his sailing accolades, Sir Robin believes his greatest achievement was setting up the Clipper Race, a global yacht race for amateur sailors which has introduced thousands of people to the sport.

A gruelling 40,000-mile circumnavigation, Sir Robin says 40% of the more than 7,000 contestants over the years had never been in a boat before starting.

“I’m glad to give them something to be proud of in their lives, and a taste of true adventure. You can see the satisfaction when they reach the end.”

Sir Robin’s passion has long been introducing people to the joys of sailing.

He believes the Southampton Boat Show is a great place to be inspired, recalling the moment when he realised he wanted to sail around the world 72 years ago.

He said: “We take people out on the winning Clipper 70 to let them see what it’s like to get on these boats. Hopefully they think, ‘Wow, I wonder what it’s like crossing an ocean in this’.”

The Southampton Boat Show runs until September 28.