British woman dies during Clipper World Yacht Race

A British woman has died while taking part in the Clipper Round the World Yacht Race.

Sarah Young, 40, was washed into the sea by a wave n the mid-north Pacific as she tended to the mainsail aboard the IchorCoal boat and was swept away in strong winds. She was not tethered to the vessel.

Miss Young's body was recovered by her crew who tried to resuscitate her, but she never regained consciousness, a race spokeswoman said.

Race organisers said a full investigation will now be carried out, as is standard practice, in cooperation with the appropriate authorities.

Ms Young, who was a keen adventurer, had wanted to take part in the race for a number of years and had celebrated her birthday days before setting sail from London at the end of last August.

Her death comes six months after that of Andrew Ashman, 49, from Kent who was killed on the same vessel after being knocked unconscious while sailing off the Portuguese coast.

His death was the first fatality in the history of the event which was established almost 20 years ago.