‘Citizen scientist' Brian becomes seventh British sailor to finish Vendée Globe After almost 100 days at sea, record-breaking yachtsman and ambassador for Earthwatch, Brian Thompson, completed the solo, non-stop, round-the-world yacht race, the Vendée Globe, becoming the seventh British sailor ever to do so.

On 16 February, Brian crossed the finish line in fifth place at 9.31am local time off the west coast of France, having sailed 28,699.8 nautical miles and spent 98 days, 20 hours, 29 minutes and 55 seconds at sea.

Crowds lined the harbour walls of the French fishing port of Les Sables d'Olonne to welcome him back, where Brian enjoyed an emotional reunion with his family and friends.

During the voyage aboard the Bahrain Team Pindar's Open 60 yacht, Brian has recorded sightings of marine life for Earthwatch, and has been helping to raise awareness of the Earthwatch oceans programme.

Speaking on the dock, Brian said, "It has been the most remarkable journey. Ever since I was a boy, I have dreamed of sailing solo around the world. The incredible feeling of crossing the finishing line made all the challenges of the last three months pale into insignificance - it's a beautiful day."

Executive Vice President of Earthwatch, Nigel Winser, says, "We are all in awe of Brian's incredible achievement in the Vendée Globe round the world yacht race, and we are of course extremely proud that in undertaking this challenge he has chosen to support Earthwatch and our oceans appeal. Whilst contending with the demands of sailing solo, Brian also found the time to record sightings of the many marine species that he encountered along the way, including pilot whales, gannet, albatross and flying fish. This is a wonderful example of Citizen Science in action. Brian's records will be fed into scientific databases to help build our understanding of our little-studied marine ecosystems."

Known as the ‘Everest of the Seas', the 2008/09 race has lived up to its reputation as one of the world's toughest sporting challenges. Since the start of the race on November 9, just 11 of the original 30 boats look set to complete the race.

Brian overcame everything that was thrown at him, including a series of repairs to the front section of the boat, a brutal mast climb on Christmas Day, and winds of more than 60 knots in one of the biggest storms of the race, after rounding Cape Horn.

Brian added, "I tried not to let myself think about the finish too much. In fact, it was only after my final tack that I thought I'm really going to make it."

• Read more about Brian at the finish line.
• Visit the Earthwatch website to find out more about the Earthwatch Oceans Appeal and Earthwatch's marine projects.

Editor's notes