St Andrews Radio

A St Andrews student and competitive rower was rescued from the Atlantic Ocean on Wednesday after his boat was capsized by a huge wave.

Tom Sauer, a final year Modern History and Management student, was accompanied by friend Tom Fancett from London, as they attempted to row across the Atlantic from the Canary Islands to Barbados. However the two Toms, both 23, were cut short just eight days into the 3000-mile charity endeavour which was expected to take two months to complete.

The men spent 10 hours on their small life raft before help arrived in the form of a luxury cruise liner which had been alerted of their whereabouts by Falmouth coastguard. Staff on board commented that they would “pull out all the stops” to treat the shipwrecked duo.

A spokesperson for the University said “Their endeavour was a perfect example of the St Andrews spirit of courage and ambition.”