Five-women team defeat terrors of Atlantic... all in name of freedom

SHE confessed to finding her sea legs a bit “wobbly”, but Katie Pattison-Hart said she was delighted to be back on dry land after completing a record-breaking row across the Atlantic.

The 32-year-old, who was born and raised in Baildon, near Bradford, almost collapsed with exhaustion when her team’s boat The Guardian arrived in Port St Charles Marina in Barbados early yesterday, after 3,000 miles and 45 days of back-breaking effort.

Their completion of the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge – rowing’s toughest event – was the fastest crossing of the Atlantic by an all-female crew and the first time a five-woman team had rowed across any ocean.

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Their arrival in port also marked their first sight of land since leaving the Canary Islands in December, and their arrival at 5.13am GMT shaved a clear four days off the previous women’s record.

The women braved 30ft waves, gale force winds, salt rashes and sleep deprivation among other challenges, but never forgot why they were doing it.

Miss Pattison-Hart, a former banker who is now a Dubai-based model and business consultant, was part of the Row For Freedom team, which aims to raise awareness of people trafficking.

The former pupil of Beckfoot School in Bingley said: “I’m absolutely exhausted. When we got off the boat it was the first time we had stood up properly for 45 days; we’ve been having to crawl from deck to the cabin because the waves were so big. So that’s a relief but my legs are a bit wobbly just standing up. There were so many people on the shore when we came in and it’s lovely to see some new faces.”

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She added: “We are so pleased the British public have been behind us on the challenge. We’ve been through highs and lows but nothing compared to what victims of human trafficking have been through.”

The team was rowing to raise money for The A21 Campaign and ECPAT UK, charities working to stop human trafficking.

Immigration Minister Damian Green was one of the first to congratulate them. He called it a “fantastic achievement”, and said: “I’d like to extend my warm congratulations to all five crew members and commend their efforts to raise the awareness of human trafficking and, in doing so, breaking two world records.”

Also nearing the end of the gruelling race is a group of injured British servicemen.

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The six-man Row2Recovery team – of whom four lost limbs during service in Iraq or Afghanistan – are trying to raise £1m for three military charities: Help for Heroes; the Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Families Association; and ABF, The Soldiers’ Charity.

The team includes able-bodied ex-captains Ed Janvrin, 32, and former Catterick trainer Alex Mackenzie, 33.

Although they have been buoyed by widespread support, including a morale-boosting call from Prince Harry, they have faced serious setbacks, including a lack of fresh water when their desalination unit broke. They are expected to make land on Wednesday.

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