A sailor who was washed overboard while taking part in this year’s Newport Bermuda Race drowned despite efforts by his crew mates to rescue him, according to an investigation into the tragedy.

The report also concluded that it was unlikely that Colin Golder would have been swept into the ocean in the first place had he been wearing a life jacket and safety harness.

Mr Golder, 74, was skippering his yacht, Morgan of Marietta, with a crew of seven when it left Newport, Rhode Island on June 17 in strong winds and high seas.

Shortly after midday on June 19, the 42ft sloop was struck by a wave that washed over the crew and carried Mr Golder into the water.

The report, compiled by US Sailing, the national governing body for the sport, described how crew members immediately initiated a person-overboard response and released a lifesling into the water.

The report went on: “Colin made contact with the lifesling and was alert at the time he did so. He swam to the lifesling, proceeded to put the lifesling on under his arms without any issues. He was not talking at this point, nor did anyone on the crew hear Colin talking after he fell overboard.

“The crew properly executed man overboard procedures and reconnected Colin to the boat within four to five minutes, never losing sight of Colin. Their efforts in this regard are impressive, especially given the conditions.

“However, during the process of bringing him back to the boat, Colin appeared to lose consciousness and his face went into the water.

“Multiple crew members stood on the platform and raised Colin’s head out of the water as they attached Morgan’s jib halyard to the lifesling. At this point, Colin’s skin was blue, and he was unresponsive. While trying to raise Colin’s body on the jib halyard, the halyard chafed aggressively and began to shred.

“Eventually, Colin slid out of the lifesling, and crew members were unable to retain a grasp of him. He was floating face down near the boat and believed by the crew to be dead at this point.”

According to the report, it took the crew another two hours to retrieve Mr Golder’s body from the water before returning to Rhode Island.

It said: “The crew experienced great difficulty in recovering Colin’s body. Recovering an unconscious body absent a personal flotation device and harness, particularly given Colin’s physical stature and the conditions existing at the time of the incident, would have been extraordinarily difficult for any crew.”

The investigation concluded that the death could have been avoided if Mr Golder, an experienced sailor, had followed basic safety procedures.

The report said: “The conditions existing at the time of the incident clearly warranted use of a personal flotation device combined with a harness and tether, and to be clipped in while on deck. Indeed, Colin’s fellow watch members were equipped in this manner. Some were even ‘double tethered’ to keep themselves as close as possible to the boat.

“Colin’s failure to wear/use a personal flotation device, harness and tether proximately caused the person overboard incident and, ultimately, his death.

“If you fall overboard while sailing offshore, your chance of death increases dramatically. Staying attached to the boat is critical to minimising this risk.

“Colin’s crew did not press him to wear a personal flotation device, harness and tether in these conditions. Had Colin been wearing a personal flotation device, harness and tether, it is highly unlikely that he would have been washed overboard.”

In its recommendations, the panel argued that crews should be encouraged to wear safety equipment in certain conditions.

“Sailors should wear PFDs, harnesses and tethers when on deck in inclement weather and when conditions otherwise warrant.

“It is often said that wearing such equipment is a ‘personal decision’. We disagree. Any time a person goes overboard, the entire crew is at risk.

“For that reason, all crew members should be trained to actively promote safety requirements and standards, ensure that all crew members comply with them and be prepared to challenge each other with respect to safety issues.

“We recommend that the safety equipment requirements should be expressly rewritten to emphasise that all crew members bear responsibility for acknowledging and enforcing requirements associated with good seamanship, and that skippers expressly instruct their crews in this regard.”

The full report can be read here.