MIKE Golding is closing in on a place in the Vendee Globe record books.

The Hampshire sailor was this morning around 460 nautical miles away from crossing the finishing line off the French port of Les Sables d’Olonne.

He is set to become the first man to ever finish the Vendee Globe three times, having first completed the 23,000 mile plus solo round the world yacht race in 2000/01 and again in 2004/05.

Golding, who is set to finish sometime tomorrow, should be joined a day later by Dominique Wavre, who will also be completing his third Vendee.

Golding was fifth over the weekend, but as of this morning Jean Le Cam has overtaken him and was 45 nautical miles ahead.

If Golding finishes fifth, he will bank 40,000 Euros – 10,000 more Euros than if he finishes in his current sixth place.

Golding should cross the finishing line in his fastest Vendee time, providing he finishes before the early hours of Thursday morning.

His current Vendee best is 88 days and 15 hours, set in the 2004/05 event.

In 2000/01, the odyssey took him 110 days.

Golding has been accelerating this morning after a frustrating 48 hours wrestling with light and variable winds.

That should change and he is expecting potentially brutal conditions for the finish sprint across Biscay.

Around 35-40kts are expected, with bigger gusts.

“I have been waiting to get going and finally it is happening, “ he reported.

“It looks like it will be a windy finish alright.”