THE fifth leg of the Clipper Round the World Yacht Race started on Monday (29th January), with a Chepstow sailor back at the helm.

David Hartshorn, 53, was one of 12 skippers who departed Liverpool last year in the 40,000-mile event, but his race was cut short just days later when he was airlifted to hospital following a serious injury.

The injury, which took place on 27th August, occurred when the Team Greenings skipper’s left thumb got caught in a spinnaker sheet in breezy conditions, with wind blowing between 18 and 22 knots.

David was lifted by helicopter from the water, and required four hours of surgery on his fractured, partially detached left thumb, and needed another operation upon return to the UK.

A former superintendent, David spent 30 years between Gwent Constabulary and the Metropolitan Police before retiring in 2014. His career included serving as Britain’s most senior police officer with responsibility for public order, and overseeing major events such as the 2011 Royal Wedding and the London 2012 Olympic Games.

With his recovery going well, it was hoped that David would be able to take part in a later stage of the race, but Team Greenings’ yacht ran aground off the coast of South Africa on 31st October and took no further part in the race.

However last week it was announced he was to take over as Great Britain skipper for the remainder of the race, replacing Andy Burns who has made the difficult personal decision to step down following the tragic loss of a crew member during the third leg of the race.

On the choice to appoint David Hartshorn as the new Great Britain Skipper, Race Director Mark Light said: “David put a great deal of time and effort preparing his campaign to lead a crew around the world in this edition of the race and through circumstances outside of his control, he was unable to fulfil this goal.

“We all welcome David back and wish he and his new Great Britain team huge success for the remainder of their race together.”

Reacting to his appointment as Great Britain Skipper, David says: “Having got to know Andy closely as a fellow colleague and a strong competitor, I am of course firstly disappointed for him that he does not feel able to complete this circumnavigation with his team.

“However, I am grateful for the opportunity to build on the strong foundations he has set for his Great Britain crew, and am proud to have the opportunity to lead them for the rest of their campaign. We all look forward to sharing a drink with Andy back in Liverpool where we’ll celebrate completing the journey we started out on together.”

The teams have now passed the half way stage in the race, having completed 20,000 nautical miles. The Great Britain team currently sits in seventh place in the overall race standings.