8:24 PM Sat 20 Dec 2008 GMT
 | | 'HMAS Arunta - steamed to the rescue'
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Injured round-the-world yachtsman Yann Elies is in a serious but stable condition aboard Australian frigate HMAS Arunta after being rescued in the Indian Ocean on Saturday night.
Elies' boat was left sailing slowly northwards under minimal sail and away from the track of the worst of the low pressure systems.
A crew of his supporters have left for Australia to go aboard a motor launch which will take them out to the area, and they will attempt to sail her back to shore.
The French solo yachtsman was taken off his 18 metre yacht Generali by crew members of the Arunta who had boarded by using an inflatable boat while the ship remained 200 metres clear of the yacht.
 | Yann Elies onboard Generali - |
An Australian Defence Department spokesman said Elies had a broken left femur and was in a serious but stable condition.
The Arunta's captain, Commander Stephen Bowater, said his crew had displayed exceptional professionalism during the two days to reach the French sailor who was competing in the Vendee Globe round-the-world race.
Elies was badly injured when he fell to the deck while changing sails in in heavy seas 1,200km south-west of Perth on Thursday.
Cmdr Bowater told the Vendee Globe website that his crew only had a few hours warning to get the ship operational before it left Fremantle on Friday morning on its rescue voyage.
'We have proven again that the Navy constantly maintains the ability to respond at short notice to emergency situations,' Cmdr Bowater said.
He said Elies is receiving excellent medical care from the Royal Flying Doctor Service (RFDS) doctor on board and is resting comfortably.
Fellow Vendee Globe yachtsman Marc Guillemot, who had left the race to give morale support to Elies and witnessed the rescue, described the Arunta's crew as 'highly professional'.
'They prepared Yann for the transfer - still heavy swell but they carried out the manoeuvre perfectly,' Guillemot said.
'It was like a dream - it didn't seem real. They took care of that magnificently.'
by Sky News/Sail-World
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Hamilton Island, QLD
