IT was one of the most daring rescue operations ever attempted in the rough seas of the Southern Ocean.

With high winds, in the black of night and in temperatures nearing freezing it was truly a race against time for Hampshire's two round-the-world sailors, Alex Thomson and Mike Golding.

The men started the Velux Oceans 5 race as rivals. Today, back in Hampshire, they share a deep bond and 32-year-old Thomson owes his life to Golding's single-handed dramatic rescue mission.

Plucked from a life raft, Thomson finally made it on to Golding's Ecover yacht on the fifth attempt - a moment he will never forget.

Today Thomson has spoken of his gratitude to heroic Golding.

He said: "Mike risked his boat and his life to come and get me. It is terrible that Ecover is damaged but he did a fantastic job and I am extremely grateful."

Golding, who was lying second in the race, turned his yacht around and sailed 80 miles upwind to rescue Thomson after hearing his race rival's yacht had capsized.

Hours after the rescue Golding was devastated to discover his mast was broken in two places, forcing him to turn again and head back to Cape Town to undergo repairs.

Despite the best efforts of his team to repair the damage Golding, 46, of Warsash, Southampton, was forced to retire from the race on Monday.

The drama began as the pair were vying for second place in the off the coast of South Africa, during the solo 30,000-mile race.

Alex was asleep in his bunk when he was thrown across the cabin. The keel on his yacht, Hugo Boss, had suffered irreparable damage. His yacht capsized and Thomson needed to abandon ship.

Golding said "there was no question about turning around" when he got the call to come to Thomson's aid.

He sailed upwind in a 30-knot breeze, high seas and temperatures nearing freezing to reach Thomson.

After a tense, overnight wait, the pair waited for daylight to complete the complicated rescue mission.

It took five attempts, and Thomson suffered a hand injury in the process, but after two hours Golding plucked his race opponent from a life raft in 15ft swells.

Golding said: "To be in a life raft in the middle of the Southern Ocean is as close as you are going to get to the end. If we had lost sight of him at any time, he was gone. We had to get him and we had to get him quickly."

With Thomson on board Golding had originally planned to sail on to Freemantle, Australia, to complete the first leg of the race, while Alex's yacht was left to sink.

However, just six hours later Golding discovered the damage to his mast.

Golding said: "It was a tough decision to pull out of the race but four factors in conjunction with each other made the decision very clear. Time and money are the obvious ones. We also couldn't be competitive starting from so far behind and it wouldn't be safe for me to be in the Southern Ocean without the support of the other competitors."

Both men are grateful to be back on home soil.

Golding said: "After ten days on the water together and two days in Cape Town it's good to be back."

Thomson added: "We are very disappointed to be out of the race but very thankful, in light of the state we were in, that we have managed to come back."