The atmosphere was fantastic throughout the world's largest offshore race, the Royal Ocean Racing Club's biennial Rolex Fastnet Race. The 45th edition of the race came to its end on Friday, August 16, 2013, with the final prizegiving fittingly taking place in glorious sunshine on Mount Batten, overlooking Plymouth.

336 yachts from 20 countries started the historic race that runs from Cowes to Plymouth via the Fastnet Rock on the south-west tip of Ireland. The line up had everything: professional and Corinthian sailors; some of the world’s fastest, most technologically sophisticated yachts competing against 30-ft family crewed boats; participants from as far afield as Australia, Oman and the United States.

Overall Winner: The Formidable French

The most remarkable story of the week belonged to a father and son crew from Cherbourg, France, sailing the 33-ft JPK1010 Night And Day. This is the first occasion in its 88-year history that the Rolex Fastnet Race has been won by a doublehanded crew.

Pascal Loison and his son Alexis, a professional solo sailor, crossed the finish line off Plymouth Breakwater at 07:19:57 BST on Thursday 15 August, with an elapsed time for the 611-mile course of 3 days 18 hours 29 minutes and 57 seconds. “If you compete in offshore sailing, winning the Rolex Fastnet is really a pinnacle of success. It’s nice, it was not expected, I don’t know how to describe it,” said a shell-shocked Pascal. “We are a small boat, two handed and we have managed to win this race, beating all these large professional boats and crews,” added Alexis. “It’s my day, a good surprise and I will remember this victory all my life.”

Conditions during the race, light for the first few days before an upturn in breeze after the second half of the fleet rounded the mythical Fastnet Rock  – the midway point  –  proved advantageous for the smaller boats. It was an especially good year for the French. Twelve of the first fifteen placed yachts, indeed the top five, hailed from across the English Channel.

 Line Honours: Debut success for Esimit Europa 2

An impressive clutch of boats were competing for line honours, awarded to the fastest monohull yacht. Igor Simcic’s 100-ft Maxi yacht Esimit Europa 2 (SLO) started as marginal favourite having dominated Mediterranean offshore sailing over the past three years but arrived as a Rolex Fastnet debutant. In unfamiliar territory she would have to be even more wary of the first-class competition on offer. The fleet’s other 100-ft Maxi charter yacht ICAP Leopard, owned by Mike Slade, is a two-time Rolex Fastnet line honours winner and set a race record in 2007. The Ian Walker-skippered Volvo 70 Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing set a new race record in 2011 (42 hours, 39 minutes) and along with the predominantly female crew on Team SCA (SWE) were primed to impress.

Multihull: Fastest home

Dona Bertarelli and Yann Guichard’s 131-ft Maxi trimaran yacht Spindrift 2 was the largest boat in attendance. She was also to prove the fastest. Completing the course in 38 hours, 53 minutes and 58 seconds, she sealed multihull line honours although six hours short of the record time set two years earlier by the same boat under the name Banque Populaire V. “We’re very pleased, very happy to be here because the outcome was not certain,” said Bertarelli on arrival in Plymouth. “We knew it would be difficult, especially with the light conditions, but we managed to manoeuvre well, keep good speed and have the right sails up to stay ahead.”

By the final prizegiving at 17:00 BST (16 August), 322 of the 336 starters had completed the race. Eight boats had retired.