Sixty-seven-year-old Igor Zaretskiy was in last place in the Golden Globe Race. His mast was seriously damaged, even after jury-rigged repairs. He had lost a hatch, exposing his cabin the elements, and his hull was so fouled that his boat, Esmerelda, was crawling along, at times at just over a knot.

He wisely chose to put into Albany in Western Australia for repairs. By stopping he was no longer in the main race but could still finish in the Chichester Class. Despite everything, he decided that once repairs were completed, he would sail on. Then, a medical checkup changed his mind. He is flying back to his home in Russia where he may need an operation. 

From the Golden Globe website:

IGOR ZARETSKY has all the work done on his boat and is basically ready to leave but a precautionary medical check has shown some issues and their team doctor in Russia has advised that an immediate operation may be needed. So Igor flies to Russia immediately and is adamant that he will return and sail again to the finish as a Chichester sailor. There is NO TIME LIMIT for the GGR but the consideration is can he get it done, then Pass a new GGR medical test to confirm he is OK and then return to the Boat and sail to Cape Horn before the end of MARCH!. If not he may need to wait till the 2019 Season but for now our Friend IGOR has the full support of the GGR and we wish him well and a speedy recovery if the operation is proven to be necessary!

Of the 18 starting racers, five are now competing in the race.