Russian NHS doctor hits halfway in row for Ukraine

Dr Leo Krivskiy said he remained in high spirits as he presses on with his epic voyage

A Russian NHS doctor who is rowing 2,630 nautical miles solo across the Atlantic to raise money for medics in Ukraine has reached the midway point.

Moscow-born Dr Leo Krivskiy, a consultant anaesthetist at Southampton General Hospital, is in a 6m (20ft) ocean rowing boat called Happy Socks.

Dr Krivskiy, who is 1,210 nautical miles from the finish in Barbados, said he was down to his last few squares of chocolate and had not seen a ship for more than three weeks.

He set off from Gran Canaria on Boxing Day and has currently raised more than £23,000.

Dr Krivskiy set off on the solo row from Gran Canaria on Boxing Day

He said he was averaging about 30 miles per day but trade winds were making life rough on board with large waves, "it's a slow journey, it's a slog but physically I'm holding up".

He decided to take on the challenged sparked by personal ties as his mother and wife are Ukrainian.

When Russia invaded the country in 2022 he said his wife's parents were in Kyiv and he was "horrified" to see it under attack.

The money raised will go to Ukrainian medical charity UKROPS set up by Dr Krivskiy.

He created the charity after volunteering to drive medical equipment to Kyiv.

The Moscow-born doctor has been raising money to support medics in Ukraine through a charity he founded a year ago