Laurence Dollimore
A JETSKI record breaker has called in police after his latest attempt was almost ruined by thieves in southern Spain.
Marinus du Plessis (below) was travelling from the Arctic to Athens to perform the longest-ever journey made on a jetski in 40 days.
But the South African, 55, had to cut his 11,000km Guiness World Record attempt short after thieves in Barbate, Cadiz, stripped down his jetski for parts while it was docked overnight.
“I’m so disappointed with what happened here,” Plessis, a food exporter, told the Olive Press, “Criminals took so many bits off it, it half sunk.
He continued: “My security alarm went off at 3am but by the time I got to it the equipment was all stolen.
“To make matters worse they returned the next night to strip down the rest.”
Plessis was making the epic journey on behalf of Gift of the Givers Foundation – a charity for disabled people in South Africa.
He still managed to beat the previous record by more than 4,000km.
He first broke a world record by jet skiing 17,500km from Alaska to Panama in under 95 days.
Plessis stressed that he hasn’t let the unfortunate event put a downer on his experience.
“Although I was very disappointed in what happened I also had the most fantastic experience with the locals,” he said. “Most locals in Barbate were fabulous.”
He added: “This mission was about more than breaking records. It was a matter of experience, and it has exceeded all expectations.”
Police are analysing CCTV footage to try and identify the thieves.
