Frank Rothwell, a 70-year-old from Oldham, England, is now the oldest person to conquer the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge solo.
Rothwell, who arrived into English Harbour, Antigua, on February 5th, beat rowers half his age to finish the 3,000-mile race in 56 days, 2 hours and 41 minutes whilst raising funds for Alzheimer’s Research UK along the way.
With the support of Iceland Foods Charitable Foundation, which pledged to double the first £500,000 worth of donations, Frank has raised over $1 million so far. Better yet, Frank arrived more than a week ahead of schedule so he could spend Valentine’s Day with his wife of 50 years, Judith.
The Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challengeis a race with purpose, an inspirational event, which draws out the wild spirit in everyday people to achieve extraordinary things. This year’s challenge, which is taking place under strict COVID-19 protocols, saw rowers set off from La Gomera, Spain on December 12th, spending at least 30 days at sea and rowing relentlessly in 2-hour shift patterns.
From a fleet of 21 international teams, over 16 teams have crossed the line including four-man crews, all-female and solo crews. The winners of this year’s Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge, Row4Cancer also set a new world record for the fastest pair to ever row across the Atlantic, having completed the 3,000-mile rowing race in 32 days, 18 hours and 13 minutes. Four teams remain at sea, including solo rowers from the United Kingdom, and are due into Antigua during February.
The annual race looks to draw out the wild spirit in ‘everyday people,’ encouraging them to achieve extraordinary things. “Talisker was founded in 1830 by two wild spirits–the MacAskill brothers–who rowed from Eigg to Skye in search of the perfect location for their distillery so we can say that Talisker Whisky is truly Made By The Sea,” commented Natalia Montigny, Head of Global Marketing for Talisker. “Every year we are touched by the incredible stories and determination of those taking part in the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge. We wish them all the best as they undertake this epic journey and look forward to welcoming them back and raising a toast to their accomplishment.”
