Ellen MacArthur other passion

 Ex-love reveals secret calls of round-world
yacht record heroine
Ellen's other passion

By Nadia Cohen & Gerard Couzens

SAILING sensation Ellen MacArthur used a shock tactic to help her finish her epic voyage this week—secret calls to her ex-lover.

As she battled against the elements, brave Ellen clung to romantic memories of seducing the Portuguese diver who saved her life.

And handsome Luis Costa will never forget their passionate affair either.

In an exclusive interview, he told the News of the World: "The first night we were together Ellen insisted on staying in the guest room.

"Half of me didn't want to rush things but the other half was itching for her to slip into my bed during the night.

"The next night was the first time we made love.

"We had been out for a romantic meal at a posh restaurant in Portugal overlooking the Atlantic Ocean.

"I can't remember who made the first move when we got home, it just happened. It was beautiful and when we woke up in each other's arms I felt our relationship had stepped up to another level."

Derbyshire-born Ellen, 28, sailed into the record books on Monday with the fastest-ever solo round-the-world trip. She smashed the previous record of 72 days, 22 hours, 54 minutes and 22 seconds by more than a day.

And Luis was with her every step of the way.

He said: "I put a bouquet of paper flowers and four good luck charms in Ellen's boat.

Emotion

"It's traditional to give an offering to the sea god Neptune, and Ellen phoned me one day to say she was throwing the flowers and three of the charms into the ocean.

"We spoke for about 20 minutes. She was talking so fast because of the emotion of what she was going through.

"I told her I missed her and to take care of herself." But our national heroine didn't lose her sense of humour during the trip. In one call she made Luis laugh by telling him the weather was so bad she was having trouble cooking.

And he got another call at the crucial moment that Ellen crossed the Equator.

He said: "We couldn't be intimate but it was so nice to know she was thinking of me at such a historic time."

And when Ellen hit dry land, she couldn't wait to speak to her former lover again.

Luis said: "I sent her a jokey text saying, ‘I'm very proud of you. I just don't know if you made the trip by plane or boat!' She phoned me the next day from the physio's. She told me, ‘I feel knackered but over the moon—everything in my body hurts'.

"It was probably the longest talk we've had since we split up.

"It brought back some nice memories of the times we spent together and the feelings I had then."

Luis and Ellen—set to be made a dame after her incredible feat—remained friends after their break-up and he asked her permission before sharing their romance with News of the World readers.

Ironically, love was the last thing on Luis' mind when he first set eyes on the bedraggled yachtswoman perched on a capsized boat in the middle of the Atlantic wearing a bright yellow waterproof jacket.

But rescue diver Luis, responding to a mayday call after her boat overturned off the coast of Portugal, soon realised the love of his life was hiding under that mac.

Luis spoke hardly any English then, so just two hours later Ellen thanked him for rescuing her—with a passionate first kiss.

Luis, 30, said: "That moment will live with me for ever.

"We were sitting on the upturned hull of her boat being towed back to port with just the moon and stars for light.

"The only place I could find to sit was behind her with my arms round her, gripping an emergency steering wheel for balance.

Magic

"She turned round as I was talking to her and the next thing I knew we were kissing.

"It wasn't just a peck on the cheek, it was full-blown passion. Ellen turned her head immediately afterwards as if she was embarrassed at what she had done but I loved it."

When they reached dry land she invited him out for a thank-you dinner with the rest of the crew—and made sure she got his number. It was May 2003 and the start of a heady seven-month love affair.

Luis added: "I can still remember the magic of the following weekend we spent together when she flew back to Portugal. We went for a long walk in a park by a river then had a romantic candlelit dinner."

The next night they made love for the first time and their romance set off full tilt.

From then on they snatched weekends together whenever they could and smitten Ellen showered Luis with passionate notes when they were apart.

She signed postcards "Tautau", his pet name for her. After one weekend in Lisbon, near Luis' home, she wrote: "I never knew three days could feel like forever. Dive with me, swim with me. XXX."

But Ellen's love of the sea put pressure on their romance—and eventually drove them apart. They split just after a trip to Oz.

Luis's eyes filled with tears as he said: "Ellen is an amazing person but the obsession that drove her to become who she is today is undoubtedly part of the reason we are not together any more.

"Sailing is her first love and I didn't want to try to force her to give it up, so I went for the other option, to leave her life.

"It was a sad moment and there were lots of tears, but I'll never forget my Tautau."