Jazz Turner, a GB para-athlete and engineer from Seaford, East Sussex, set off on 2nd June, hoping to become the first wheelchair user to sail solo, unassisted, and non-stop around Britain while raising £30,000 for a sailing charity.

Since starting her voyage, athlete Jazz Turner has smashed her funding target and since increased it to £50,000 for Newhaven and Seaford Sailability, which enables disabled people to get onto the water. She says she wants ‘to help get more people sailing and give them the opportunities I’ve been lucky enough to be granted.’

Jazz is a successful sportsperson, having won the Laser 4.7 nationals and coming second overall in the Skud 18 National Championship in 2022. She was an Andrew Simpson Foundation ambassador and received the RYA Family Volunteer Award in 2022.

Jazz Turner prepares for her voyage aboard FEAR. Photo: North Sails / Jazz Turner via Instagram

‘Sailing is the easy part’

Jazz lives with hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos, resulting in using a wheelchair on land. She also can’t consume large quantities of food or drink at any one time.

When sailing, she must maintain a good nutrition regimen so that her body receives enough calories. ‘Sailing is the easy part,’ says Jazz. ‘Managing my health, nutrition, and well-being is the hard part.’

On her website, Jazz delves into the details of the challenging path that led her on this sailing journey. She grew up in an abusive home, leaving to go into foster care when she was 18. Before this, she’d never been to a doctor and assumed that the pain she was living with was normal.

Her foster mum was a GP and diagnosed her with Ehlers-Danlos, which meant that by that point, her body had ‘essentially collapsed’. She explained, ‘It turned out I had had multiple dislocations and had been walking on broken ankles for years.’

After three surgeries, seeing one orthopaedic surgeon snapped ATFL ligaments and removed ankle bones later, she was forced to become a wheelchair user.

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Jazz Turner: Sailing for Sailability

On her mission around Britain, Jazz is sailing in an Albin Vega 27ft yacht aptly named FEAR, which inspires her to ‘Face Everything and Rise’. The yacht, with its mermaid design, is where Jazz says she finds freedom, thanks to the adaptations that allow her to sail.

Jazz plans to sail clockwise around the coast and remains realistically optimistic about how her disability may affect her. ‘If I am forced to stop for health reasons, then I aim to remain unassisted,’ she says.

Jazz’s yacht, FEAR, has solar panels and a custom sail package for her journey. Photo: North Sails / Jazz Turner via Instagram

Writing on Instagram, she explains, ‘I’ve been in two layers of thermals, salopettes, and boots for nearly 3 weeks straight. Everything is slightly damp and covered in salt.’

With her condition, Jazz’s body can’t regulate temperature, so as an ambassador for Henri Lloyd, she tested the best apparel for her needs before her trip. However, despite preparations, Jazz explained, ‘My muscles are exhausted from constant sail changes as well as living on a rocking moving platform.’

Despite these struggles, she’s grateful for the experience. ‘I get to witness extraordinary moments most people can only ever dream of.’

Her drive to continue also stems from the need to raise money. ‘Every time I falter and want to give up, I only have to check the fundraiser to remember why I’m doing this,’ she says.

Sailability will use the money to buy two new adapted hansa dinghies boats for disabled sailors.

You can donate here: https://www.gofundme.com/f/project-fear

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