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For more than 80 days Boris Herrmann was out on the oceans for the Vendée Globe.
28,000 nautical miles (almost 50,000 kilometers), all alone, without going ashore, exposed to wind and weather.
And just before the finish of the toughest sailing regatta in the world, the drama happened.
The German still had 90 nautical miles to cover when he collided with a fishing boat off the French coast.
Although Herrmann was able to continue on his way, all chances of victory were gone.
Around twelve o'clock he should now reach the finish in Les Sables-d'Olonne on Thursday.
But how did the accident come about?
The first pictures taken by Herrmann now show the damage that the fishing boat inflicted on Herrmann's ship “Seaexplorer - Yacht Club de Monaco”.
The trawler surprised him in the dark and in his sleep.
“I slept, woke up and saw the fishing trawler like a big wall in front of me.
I hit it several times, but then I was able to continue.
That was a shock ”, Herrmann described the events while still on the water.
A headsail got caught in the cranes of the fishing boat.
His boom hammered the side wall several times.
The bow of the "Seaexplorer - Yacht Club de Monaco" after the collision with the fishing boat
Source: dpa / Boris Herrmann
Herrmann himself survived "the shock moments" unharmed, but his yacht was badly damaged at the bow.
The mast stopped, but the foil broke.
This is an underwater hydrofoil that gives the ship lift, making it faster.
Herrmann carried out some repairs, was simply no longer competitive after this damage and sailed towards the coast at only seven knots.
For comparison: the yachts can reach top speeds of up to 40 knots (around 74 km / h).
"We sleep a maximum of 30 minutes at a time"
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How the accident could have happened was a mystery to Herrmann.
Because of course the high-tech yacht is equipped with instruments and technology to prevent such an occurrence.
“This is the worst nightmare I've ever had,” he said. “I had all the alarms on and tested beforehand.
But they didn’t work here.
I've never seen anything like it at sea.
But the most important thing is that nobody was injured. "
The solo sailors get very little sleep on their 80 days around the world, in which they mainly eat freeze-dried food for astronauts.
They try to rest several times a day, the sleep intervals are short.
“We sleep a maximum of 30 minutes at a time in these races,” Herrmann once described the hardships on board.
Most of the time, the high-tech yachts are steered by autopilot, which of course also takes over during the skipper's short breaks.
Herrmann shows damage to his yacht
Source: dpa / Boris Herrmann
There are several warning systems on board, including radar and the Automatic Identification System (AIS).
This security system works via VHF waves and has a range of 20 to 30 nautical miles.
It is considered safer than radar because the radio paths are not obstructed by obstacles such as headlands or islands.
Ships identify each other via AIS.
It is mandatory for large ships in international traffic whether this also applied to the trawler and whether the system was installed on board is not yet known.
"Boris is the winner of hearts"
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And so someone other than Herrmann won.
The French "Apivia" skipper Charlie Dalin was the first to cross the finish line on Wednesday evening.
The 36-year-old professional sailor and yacht designer finished the race after 80 days, six hours, 15 minutes and 47 seconds.
The winner was not, however, but Dalin's compatriot Yannick Bestaven.
Although he only reached the goal in third place, he benefited from a time credit of 10:15 hours.
He was awarded this because he had interrupted his race and participated in the rescue operation of the shipwrecked Kevin Escoffier on the night of November 30th to December 1st.
Herrmann was also involved in the rescue of Escoffier and will receive a bonus of six hours.
After the collision it didn't help him any more, all chances were gone.
Tim Kröger, who himself circumnavigated the world twice in a sailboat and took part in the world-famous America's Cup, said: “This is a disaster.
The worst that can happen to you.
But Boris is the winner of hearts.
That he took part in it, that he took us all with him at sea, that is a gigantic achievement. "
On land in France, Herrmann's wife Birte Lorenzen-Herrmann and the seven-month-old daughter Malou, who had previously been in quarantine to be able to start the trip to the Atlantic, were already waiting.
Herrmann will be happy to finally see them again.
And endlessly sad that he cannot embrace her as the winner of the race because all the hardships and efforts were nullified so shortly before the end.
"Maybe I'll never get so close to a podium like this again," said Herrmann: "I've fought like a lion in the last few days."