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Jimmy Cornell has influenced the contemporary cruising scene more than any other sailor. An accomplished sailor, public speaker and author, he has sailed over 200,000 miles in all oceans of the world including three circumnavigations as well as voyages to Antarctica and the Northwest Passage.
Thousands of sailors have fulfilled their dream of blue water cruising with the help of Jimmy Cornell's books, among them the international bestseller World Cruising Routes. Now in its 8th edition, and with over 200,000 copies sold to date, this is one of the best-selling nautical publications in the world.
As the founder of thehighly successful ARC transatlantic rally, Jimmy Cornell is credited with having devised the offshore cruising rally concept. In the last three decades, Jimmy Cornell has organized 38 transatlantic rallies, five round the world rallies and one round the world race, with over 3,000 boats and 15,000 sailors having participated in his sailing events.
Jimmy Cornell was born in Romania in 1940. He grew up in Brasov, where he attended the German Honterus Gymnasium. He later attended Bucharest University where he studied economics. With his British wife Gwenda, he moved to London in 1969. He took up sailing while working for the BBC World Service in London.
In 1974 Jimmy Cornell fitted out a 36-foot fibreglass hull (Trintella III, van de Stadt design - the first Aventura). In 1975 he left England with Gwenda and their two children (Doina 7 and Ivan 5) on a world voyage lasting six years, which took them to some 70 countries and totalled 68,000 miles. During the voyage Jimmy Cornell sent back regular radio reports to the BBC World Service and also made regular freelance contributions for various magazines and radio stations.
A second Aventura (Bill Dixon design,12 metre/40 feet in steel) was launched in 1989 and completed a circumnavigation between 1989 and 1992, some of which was part of the first round the world rally organized by Jimmy between 1991 and 1992.
Aventura III (OVNI 13 metre/43 aluminiumdesigned by Philippe Briand) was launched in May 1998 and sailed in 1999 to Antarctica. From there Aventura III sailed to Alaska and British Columbia. In 2001 Jimmy started his third circumnavigation, which he completed in 2006.
Aventura IV (Exploration 45, aluminium, designed by Olivier Racoupeau) was launched in 2014 as the prototype of a new design, the Garcia Exploration 45, conceived by Jimmy as the perfect cruising boat for both high latitudes and tropical waters. In 2015 Jimmy successfully navigated the Northwest Passage in Aventura IV.
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