Scot set to sail solo around the world in Golden Globe race

Scottish sailor Andrew Ritchie is set to embark on a nine-month solo trip around the world and says he is ready for the challenge.

The 70-year-old from Arrochar is one of 24 skippers competing in the 2026 edition of the Golden Globe Race, where participants travel 30,000 miles across the oceans without modern technology or GPS.

Andrew is the only Scot and the oldest participant in the Golden Globe Race, inspired by Great British sailor Sir Robert Knox-Johnston, who was the only person to finish back in 1968.

Participants can only use the tools available back then – that means no modern technology for mapping their route, and has been called the “voyage of madmen” due to being the longest, loneliest and most daring challenge in sailing.