Abhilash Tomy returns to sailing after 2018 near-death experience in Indian Ocean, will race in Les Sables d’Olonne
- After a devastating 2018 storm that race nearly killed him, Abhilash Tomy returns to ocean racing this year for the Les Sables d’Olonne in France
- ‘I considered taking up Paralympic sailing, in case I was paralysed for the rest of my life,’ says Tomy
On September 20, 2018, Abhilash Tomy was sailing somewhere in the middle of the Indian Ocean. The closest continent to him at that point was Antarctica. He had been out at sea for a little more than two months and was running in third position as part of the Golden Globe Race.
The weekly call scheduled with race founder, Don McIntyre, brought news. A storm was brewing above him, “vicious, but short and sweet”, with winds “well over 50 knots”. It was likely to hit him in a few hours, but since it seemed to be moving fast, McIntyre had his fingers crossed, hoping the sea didn’t get a chance to build up “really big”.
True to the forecast, the storm hit Tomy with fury. The winds changed rapidly, bringing towering waves from two different directions. Tomy says the sea was “very confused”, which eventually led to the accident.
His sailboat, Thuriya, flipped over twice. When it propped back up on the second occasion, Tomy found himself stranded high up on the mast. He remembers falling anywhere between 5 and 9 metres and landing on the boom, a horizontal, aluminium pole that extends from the base of the mast. As the storm continued to toss them around, he went about securing things inside the boat. Ten minutes later when he tried to stand, his legs buckled under him. He realised something was gravely wrong.
There was no reason to take further risks – Tomy’s race was over. He sent out a text message and then lay in his bunk for over three days, awaiting rescue. There were moments of despair as he thought of all that he had invested in the effort. But it was also the time he started dreaming of returning to the race one day.
“I thought of which boat to buy, maybe learn French to be able to communicate more effectively during the next race. Then I considered taking up Paralympic sailing, in case I was paralysed for the rest of my life. I was constantly chanting and breathing deep to stay calm. I knew I would get out of the situation,” Tomy said.
“It was just plain bad luck. And I think nobody could have survived that storm.”
