William Hatfield

William Hatfield (born 14 January 1939) is an Australian retired engineer and fisherman who on 22 February 2020, at the age of 81, became the oldest person to have successfully sailed solo, non-stop and unassisted around the Earth.

Hatfield simultaneously set the speed record for a person sailing single-handedly westbound around the world in a vessel of under in length.

Previous circumnavigation attempts Hatfield had embarked on three separate failed unassisted single-handed non-stop circumnavigation attempts before his final successful voyage.

Since Hatfield's circumnavigation was in the more challenging westabout direction, he simultaneously set a non-age-related record, confirmed by the World Sailing Speed Record Council (WSSRC), for fastest single-handed westbound circumnavigation in a vessel of under in length: 258 days, 22 hours, 24 minutes, and 9 seconds.