Bridgetown, Barbados
24th of March 2022
London-based lawyer Victoria Evans arrived this morning into Port St. Charles, Barbados, after rowing solo across the Atlantic Ocean, in aid of the UK Charity: Women in Sport.
The 35-year-old’s journey began when she departed Tenerife on February 11th, 2022, and after approximately 41 days at sea, she arrived in Barbados at approximately 4:57 AM this morning, Thursday, 24th of March 2022.
Victoria’s journey is pending confirmation from Guinness World Records. Victoria’s official time is expected to be confirmed in the coming days before it will be determined whether she has become the Fastest Woman in the World to Row Solo Across the Atlantic Ocean. The current Guinness World Record for this title is 49 days, 7 hours and 15 minutes.
After arriving into Barbados this morning, greeted by friends and family who travelled over from the UK, Victoria Evans said “I feel relieved. I am so happy to be here. I’ve been celebrating since I saw Barbados about 24 hours ago”.
Victoria continues, “A solo expedition is about so much more than one person. Taking on this epic challenge was about driving positive change, inspiring others and using the achievement as a platform to progress the narrative about women in sport. Completing the crossing is just the start of the work I intend to do in this field and I can use this experience to show that we are capable of anything, after all, actions speak louder than words”.
Following three years of focused training and qualifications, and a 12-month postponement due to Covid travel restrictions, Victoria, who hails from West Yorkshire, rowed the 3000 miles (5000km) in a 7-metre-long boat, True Blue, to Port St. Charles, Barbados, completing more 1.5 million strokes of the oars across the Atlantic Ocean.
Commenting on Victoria’s journey Barbados Minister for Sport, Charles Griffith said “We are honoured to welcome Victoria across the finish line to Barbados. Rowing solo across the Atlantic Ocean in just 41 days is an incredible feat, and we eagerly await confirmation of Victoria’s official time and newest Guinness World Record. Victoria’s passion, endurance, and strength during her time at sea is truly inspiring for athletes here in Barbados, in Victoria’s home in the UK, and worldwide.”
Minister Griffith continues, “After recently welcoming Dr. Karen Weekes, the first Irish woman to row solo across the Atlantic, Barbados is honoured to be the destination of choice for the end of Victoria’s journey and mark the finish line of the latest world record to be broken.”
To complete her journey and beat the world record, Victoria spent 12-14 hours a day rowing, with a maximum of 6 hours sleep, burning approximately 5000kcal a day. The remainder of her time was spent cooking, making water, cleaning, undertaking maintenance etc. Victoria, with sustenance comes in the form of freeze-dried food and up to 10 litres of water each day.
Victoria faced all the elements, including waves the height of houses, dark nights, storms, and sweltering heat. Evans was also self-reliant for repairs and had to get off the boat to clean the underneath during her trip – whilst avoiding the sharks and whales that inhabit the ocean.
As part of her journey, Victoria is raising funds for UK charity, Women in Sport. CEO of Women in Sport, Stephanie Holborn MBE, thanked Victoria for her fundraising efforts and congratulated her on this incredible achievement, saying “Tori is an inspiration and Women in Sport is massively proud that she’s chosen to fundraise for our charity. How simply incredible is it to smash a World Record by rowing on your own for 41 days across the Atlantic Ocean? How mind-boggling to be at sea with sharks and dolphins for company and to overcome such massive obstacles to reach the finish line.”
Holborn continued, “This is the culmination of years of dedicated work to build the right boat, the right fitness, and break out of lockdowned Europe even before overcoming huge waves, storms and physical and mental exhaustion. Tori’s battles represent the battles that girls and women face every day to break out of stereotypes, to overcome limiting expectations, to beat back the storm of misogyny and sexual harassment and beat a path for themselves towards the joy and exhilaration of sport. Thank you to everyone who’s given to Women in Sport through Tori’s funding page. And THANK YOU Tori for your incredible and inspiring drive and resilience.”
Sea Change Sport Campaign
Victoria Evans’ mission by completing this incredible journey is to use sport to change mindsets at the very heart of the sports industry. Sport has the power to change lives. Despite this, women and girls continue to miss out on the benefits that sport can bring. In the UK, nearly 60% of girls aren’t meeting recommended exercise guidelines. Many campaigns seek to increase participation, but in order to truly effect change, it’s essential to tackle the structure of sport as an industry, and the culture surrounding sport.
Victoria’s aim is to highlight the issues and set an example to women and girls. She created the Sea Change Sport campaign to drive awareness, and to raise £50,000 for Women in Sport, a charity who are making great strides to drive progressive development in the culture of sport.
Commenting on the Sea Change Sport Campaign, Victoria said “Sport is one of the most powerful vehicles for change, but millions of women miss out because the industry is not designed by them or marketed to them.”
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IMAGES: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/oizxfi00jcey9ea/AAC5LB3AkUsyo6MrLCXpgKYsa?dl=0
Links:
www.gofundme.com/f/seachangesport
About Barbados
The island of Barbados offers a unique Caribbean experience steeped in rich history and colourful culture, and rooted in remarkable landscapes. Barbados is the home of two of the three remaining Jacobean Mansions left in the Western hemisphere, as well as fully functional rum distilleries. In fact, this island is known as the birthplace of rum, commercially producing and bottling the spirit since the 1700s. Each year, Barbados hosts several world-class events including the annual Barbados Food and Rum Festival; the annual Barbados Reggae Festival; and the annual Crop Over Festival, where celebrities such as Lewis Hamilton and its very own Rihanna are often spotted. Accommodations are wide and varied, ranging from picturesque plantation houses and villas to quaint bed and breakfast gems; prestigious international chains; and award-winning five-diamond resorts. In 2018, Barbados’ accommodation sector captured 13 awards in the Top Hotels Overall, Luxury, All-Inclusive, Small, Best Service, Bargain, and Romance categories of the ‘Traveler’s Choice Awards’. And getting to paradise is a breeze: the Grantley Adams International Airport offers plenty non-stop and direct services from a growing number of U.S., U.K., Canadian, Caribbean, European, and Latin American gateways, making Barbados the true gateway to the Eastern Caribbean. Visit Barbados and experience why for two years in a row it won the prestigious Star Winter Sun Destination Award at the ‘Travel Bulletin Star Awards’ in 2017 and 2018.
For more information on travel to Barbados, visit www.visitbarbados.org, follow on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/VisitBarbados, and via Twitter @Barbados.