ok, so this woman is my new hero.....FALMOUTH (Reuters) - Ellen MacArthur has become the fastest person to sail solo round the world, completing her gruelling journey in just over 71 days and 14 hours and smashing the record set last year.

"It has been an absolutely unbelievable voyage, both physically and mentally," an exhausted MacArthur said from her trimaran after crossing the finishing line off north-western France late on Monday. "It will take some time to recover."

Her time of 71 days, 14 hours, 18 minutes and 33 seconds shaved more than 32 hours off the previous world record set by Frenchman Francis Joyon, who smashed the previous mark by 21 days in what had been described as the perfect sail.