
Meet John Dempster: The SA solo rower who crossed Atlantic Ocean in 63 days
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It is the stuff of legends; those feats that separate some people from the rest of us. They are the humans who appear to be fearless and scale the highest mountains, cross oceans or tackle what seems to be the impossible. 26-year-old John Dempster, a student from the University of Cape Town joined their club this weekend when he completed a solo race across the Atlantic Ocean in the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge, which is regarded as the toughest rowing race in the world. You may wonder what drives these super individuals to take on the cold, the wet and other challenges encountered on a race across an ocean. John tackled the nautical 3,000 mile race from San Sebastian in La Gomera, Canary Islands to Nelson’s Dockyard, Antigua & Barbuda, which included Christmas Day alone on the boat to fight the stigma around mental health issues. – Linda van Tilburg