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Sailing around the world without GPS, but keeping an eye on communication. During the 2026 Golden Globe Race, Mara Løvenskiold Kveseth used a video broadcast?intended to be a highlight of her adventure?to issue instructions to her shore crew. The organizers issued her a warning.
A communication meeting in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean
It took some nerve. While the 2026 Golden Globe Race requires competitors to sail without modern electronic instruments, Norwegian sailor Helga Marie Løvenskiold Kveseth found an unexpected use for the onboard video system: to relay instructions to her communications team back on shore.
On board the Showgirl , aboard her Saltram Saga 36, the solo sailor is competing in a nonstop, unassisted round-the-world race inspired by the first Golden Globe Race in 1968. But during an interview broadcast on September 27, her concerns took a turn that was quite far removed from sail adjustments or weather strategy.
The sailor expressed concern about the visibility of her campaign on social media, going so far as to question whether she would continue her adventure if her team did not step up its communication efforts.
According to reports from several specialized media outlets, she also used the GGR Window Live to issue instructions to her team members. This behavior resulted in a reminder regarding the race?s code of conduct, confirmed by Don McIntyre on October 3, though no sporting penalty was imposed.
In a race where competitors have to do without GPS, modern weather routing, and conventional digital communications, it?s quite amusing to see a skipper worrying about her strategy on Instagram.
The GGR Window Live: A window to the sea that was never meant to become a phone
The incident is all the more interesting because the system used is one of the new features of the 2026 edition. Developed in collaboration with the Swedish company TriPeak, the GGR Window Live allows for the live streaming of footage from several sailboats participating in the race. Viewers can observe life on board, maneuvers, sea conditions, and certain navigation parameters.
To preserve the spirit of the race, the system operates exclusively from the boat to shore. Skippers can activate their broadcast, but they do not have a screen on which to view the transmitted information or receive feedback from spectators.
It's a pretty clever idea: to let internet users immerse themselves in the race without giving them access to the modern means of communication that are normally off-limits to them. But this approach has an obvious limitation. A camera that receives no input can still transmit a great deal of information?including instructions intended for those watching.
This is precisely the issue raised by Mara Løvenskiold Kveseth?s remarks. By using a public broadcast to issue instructions to her team, the sailor exploited a channel intended for recounting her race, not for organizing her campaign activities from the high seas.
A skipper who describes the challenges he faces on board is sharing his experience. A skipper who asks his crew to adjust their work is directly interfering with the organization ashore. Even if this communication offers him no advantage in terms of navigation, it goes beyond the scope intended for the system.
Merchant ships were surveyed to determine its audience
The matter is not limited to this video appearance. According to the account published by Il Giornale della Vela , the sailor had reportedly previously contacted merchant ships she encountered during her voyage by radio to obtain information about her presence on social media.
In a race where sailors navigate using a sextant, plot their position on paper charts, and have to make do with authorized weather information, asking a cargo ship to check its digital signal strength strikes a rather striking contrast.
Radio is, of course, still an essential piece of equipment for maritime safety and communication. There is no basis for asserting that this request alone constitutes a violation. But it illustrates the importance of communication in the sailor?s concerns.
While some competitors are trying to gain a few miles in the equatorial calms, the question also seems to be whether the shore team's posts are reaching enough internet users.
A legitimate cause, but one that takes up a lot of space in the media
The Norwegian sailor explains that her participation in the Golden Globe Race is intended, in particular, to help defend women?s rights and increase their visibility in adventure sports. This commitment deserves to be distinguished from the controversy. Using a sporting adventure to raise public awareness of a cause is nothing out of the ordinary. Ocean racing has long been a platform for community, educational, and environmental initiatives.
On September 27, Mara Løvenskiold Kveseth explained that the personal and financial investment she had devoted to her project was intended to ensure that her foundation and the causes it supports received sufficient attention. In the absence of results she considers satisfactory, she raised the possibility of not continuing. She has not announced her withdrawal and remains in the race.
This question remains: At what point does navigation become a means of facilitating communication, rather than the other way around?
An organization has every right to seek a platform to be heard. A female sailor has every right to want to give meaning to her round-the-world voyage. But it becomes difficult to defend the principle of a solo adventure stripped of modern tools while simultaneously trying to manage her digital campaign from the cockpit.
The Golden Globe Race deliberately cultivates a certain anachronism. You can remove screens, ban digital connections, and limit electronic equipment. It?s much harder to stop a sailor from thinking about social media. This contradiction also applies to the organizers. By developing the GGR Window Live, they clearly sought to expand the race?s audience. The official presentation of the initiative emphasizes its ability to attract new viewers and produce content for digital platforms. It would therefore be a bit hypocritical to criticize a competitor for seeking visibility when the organization itself is investing in technical resources to boost the event?s visibility.
The 2026 Golden Globe Race does not need to ban cameras to preserve its identity. It simply needs to ensure that cameras remain a record of the sailing itself, rather than tools for managing campaigns on shore.
As for Mara Løvenskiold Kveseth, she still has many miles ahead of her to make her case and demonstrate her skills as a sailor. Her communications team, for its part, will likely be able to manage without receiving further instructions from the Atlantic.
