On Day 20 of the round-the-world Volvo Ocean Race, the Swedish Ericsson 4 yacht became the first single-hulled boat ever to travel 600 nautical miles in just 24 hours. The extreme weather only made the performance even more impressive.

The past few days have seen the yachtsmen struggle with challenging weather in one of the most hazardous sporting events on the planet.  All the boats struggled with high winds and choppy seas as they made their way to Cape Town.

The team who coped with the circumstances best was Ericsson 4. Torben Grael and his crew became the first boat to breach the 600-mile barrier in one day. They even used the conditions to their advantage, riding the wind, which blew to a massive 32 knots at some points.

Ericsson 4's achievement is even more remarkable given the fact that they are a crew member short, following the withdrawal of helmsman Tony Mutter. Mutter suffered a knee infection and had to be dropped in the first week of the race.

The Swedes also increased their lead over the second-placed vessel, Puma from the USA

The Americans, however, will hope to keep in touch with the leaders in the next 24 hours, with forecasters predicting calmer seas. Jeniffer Lilly, the race weather expert, said the breeze will slow to around 10 knots for Ericsson 4 as they approach South Africa.

The boats are expected to reach the country's capital on November 3.

Team Russia were hoping for a better showing at this stage, but they are currently battling with Delta Lloyd to escape the bottom spot.

But it's still all to race for, as the event doesn’t finish for another eight months.