Darren Ladd, the Midsomer Norton Skipper of the IchorCoal yacht, one of twelve teams competing in the Clipper Round the World Race, has said that he has ‘faced one of the hardest days of his life’, after the tragic death of a second member of his crew, Sarah Young.

Miss Young was knocked overboard by a wave and died either by drowning or exposure, with race founder, Sir Robin Knox-Johnston, promising a full investigation. She was tidying the cockpit after reefing the mainsail in 35 – 40 knots of wind and was swept away after being knocked from her position, not being secured to anything. The crew immediately tried to find her but were hampered by the conditions and despite resuscitation efforts, she did not regain consciousness.

In a statement, Sir Robin Knox-Johnston, who became the first person to sail solo and non-stop around the world in 1969, said: “On behalf of everyone at Clipper Ventures, I am deeply saddened by the loss of Sarah. She was a very popular and integral member of the Clipper Race family and knew our boats well, having sailed with us since London last summer. The safety of our crew has always been and continues to be our main priority and we shall investigate the incident immediately in full co-operation with the authorities.”

The crew were on day twelve of the ninth race, taking them across the Pacific Ocean from Qingdao, China to Seattle, USA and had over 3,242 miles left to get to land. With the consent of her partner, friends, family and crew, she was buried at sea on Sunday, with prayers and poetry and sailors from the other yachts observing a silence in her honour at the same time as her burial.

Sadly, this is not the only tragedy for Skipper Darren and his crew since the beginning of the race, also losing Andrew Ashman, who died after being knocked unconscious last September. These are the only two fatalities in the race’s twenty-year history.

Although the crew are amateurs, most are already experienced sailors and would have been trained and participated in previous races. As a keen adventurer, Sarah, who last year celebrated her 40th birthday, thought the Clipper race would be the perfect way to mark the milestone. She had taken part in other expeditions, including spending a year in northern Borneo, had led teams in Zambia, Botswana and Namibia, had been mountaineering in Nepal and completed a world-first eighteen-day trek down the Skeleton Coast unsupported. Nearly 700 crew are taking part in the 2015-16 race, which left London last August and is due to return to the city on 30th July, having covered 40,000 nautical miles. In what is one of the most difficult legs of the race, the fleet has been severely tested by high, gusty winds and seas with very cold temperatures and snow flurries.

Writing in his blog, Darren Ladd said that everyone on board was in shock at the death of Miss Young and described her as a close friend and ‘enthusiastic and accomplished sailor’.

‘She was an adventurer and lived life to the full. She died an adventurer’s death battling the elements circumnavigating the globe. I wish we could have said goodbye properly, we all do.

‘On deck she was fearless and could often be found at the bow wrestling with headsails, or up the mast wrestling wrapped spinnakers – even below deck, she was wrestling crew to protect the biscuit ration. She was a great wrestler, never lost a biscuit.

‘The crew stood on deck with all the courage and dignity we could muster, read a few of Sarah’s favourite prayers and poetry, before holding a minute’s silence. The ceremony ended with a beautiful traditional Zulu song sung by our Sapinda Rainbow Ambassador, Charlotte. Today we said goodbye, but she will always be present in our hearts.

‘Today has been one of the hardest days of my life. Never underestimate the value of friendship and of team spirit. The support via email has been overwhelming and absolutely invaluable. Life is finite and often far too short.’

All of the crews involved in the race have been paying tribute to Sarah, many of whom trained with her, and are sending support to Darren and his team during this extremely difficult time.

Darren’s love of the ocean began on board his grand-father’s converted lifeboat in Weymouth and he has been training to be a race skipper since 2011. The Clipper Race is one of the toughest challenges to complete, with fewer taking part than have climbed Mount Everest.