A one-armed French yachtsman managed to swim more than four miles through rough seas before clambering 150ft up a cliff after his boat hit rocks off the west Wales coast.
Mr Bruno Jourdren (37), who lost the use of his right arm in a road accident when he was nine, was one of 47 solo yachtsmen competing in a race from Ireland to France when his 20ft vessel smashed into the Bishop's Rock in thick fog 4 1/2 miles from land early yesterday.
Unable to use his portable radio to call for help because of a flat battery, he raised the alarm by using his mobile phone to contact another yacht competing in the Solitaire du Figaro race, the Antipode.
Floundering in the water, Mr Jourdren, from Brittany, decided to go for the shore after watching the Lord Jeminy sink beneath him.
As he began to struggle through the water alone, a major rescue operation swung into action, involving a rescue helicopter from RAF Chivenor, two lifeboats, a French naval vessel escorting the race and seven other yachts.
By the time the RAF helicopter had been relieved by one from the Irish Marine Emergency Services, there was still no sign of the missing yachtsman, and fears for his safety were growing.
But in the meantime, Mr Jourdren had not only made it to the coast but had managed to get himself up 150ft to the top of the cliffs at Gesail Bay, Pembrokeshire.
More than five hours after hitting the rocks, he was found, suffering from mild hypothermia, by the St David's Coastguard station officer, Mr Tony Pearce.
It was only after he had been taken to Swansea's Morriston Hospital that the full drama of his escape unfolded.
Speaking through an interpreter, Mr Jourdren said: "When I heard the crack of the rock hitting the boat my first thought was for my yacht. I had to stop it going down.
"But then pretty soon my thoughts were all for myself. I just kept going through the water. When I reached the coast the tide was behind me and rising.
"I aimed for a safe haven at the top of the cliff. I just made it."
Mr George Oduro, the hospital registrar, said: "We were quite amazed, to be honest, that M Jourdren was in such good shape after we heard what he had gone through.
"He's a tough character and he quite obviously made herculean efforts to save himself."
But Mr Jourdren's immediate thoughts were not on his successful battle for survival. "I just want to telephone my parents in Brittany to let them know I am in one piece," he said.
"I don't want them hearing on French radio that my yacht has gone down without letting them know I am safe."