Vendee Globe winner Charlie Dalin dies at 42 after cancer battle
French sailor Charlie Dalin, the most recent winner of the non-stop round-the-world Vendee Globe race, has died at age 42 after a long battle with cancer, according to a statement from his wife. Dalin was dealing with a rare form of gastrointestinal cancer as he won the 2024-25 edition of the race. He set a record time of 64 days, 19 hours, 22 minutes and 49 seconds for the 24,300-mile route, beating Armel Le Cleac'h's 2017 mark by more than nine days. His wife Perrine Le Pape announced his passing in a message to AFP on Thursday. Dalin had finished second in the previous edition of the race in 2020-21 after initially crossing first but being relegated due to a time bonus given to runner-up Yannick Bestaven for helping in a rescue. He withdrew from the Transat Jacques Vabre race in late 2023 because of a medical issue, and revealed last October that he had been diagnosed with a tumour days before the start of that race, receiving immunotherapy treatment throughout his record Vendee Globe victory.
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Sources: BBC News
