New 24 Hour Speed Record

Between 1915 GMT on 12 June and the same time the next day, Tracy Edwards' maxi catamaran Maiden II (ex Club Med) covered an incredible 697 miles, breaking the previous record belonging to Steve Fossett's PlayStation of 687.17 miles and is frustratingly short of the elusive 700 mile a day barrier.

Maiden II is currently being delivered back to the UK, but the team specifically set out to make an attempt on the 24-hour record in the process. Prior to them leaving Newport, Rhode Island, Maiden II's Australian navigator Adrienne Cahalan had been monitoring a weather system that she hoped would provide suitable conditions - strong winds and flat - for a success record attempt and they did. At one point Cahalan reported that she saw 44 knots speed over the ground reading on the GPS.