Nigel Mansell (UK) made history by becoming the first rookie to win the IndyCar championship, in 1993. Mansell was also the 1992 Formula One World Driving Champion, making him the first driver ever to win both titles in consecutive seasons.
The first to row the Atlantic East to West from mainland Spain to West Indies (Trinidad and Tobago) is Leven Brown (UK) who rowed solo in Atlantic Wholff between 26 August 2005 – 26 January 2006.
The first to row the Atlantic East to West from Europe (Portugal) to South America (Guyana), land to land, is Stein Hoff (Norway), who rowed solo in Atlantic Star II between 10 August – 14 November 2002.
The first men to row across the Atlantic were George Harbo and Frank Samuelson (both Norway) who crossed the Atlantic West to East from USA land to land, from New York, USA to the Isles of Scilly, UK . They departed on 6 June 1896 in an 5.48-m (18-ft) long boat without sails and arrived on 1 August, after rowing 5,262 km (3,270 miles) in 55 days. They rowed for a futher five days into Le Havre, France.
The first row across the Indian Ocean by a male team of four was completed by team Row 4 Charity: Phil McCorry, Matt Hellier, Ian Allen and Nick McCorry (All UK) who completed the journey aboard the Bexhill Trust Challenger between 19 April and 26 June 2009. The journey began in Geraldton, Western Australia and ended in Port Louis, Mauritius.
The first row across the Indian Ocean by a female team of four was completed by the Ocean Angels: Sarah Duff, Fiona Waller, Joanna Jackson and Elin Haf Davis (all UK) who completed the journey between 19 April and 6 July 2009 aboard the Pura Vida. The Ocean Angels also hold the record for the fastest row across the Indian Ocean.
The first Ocean Four to row the Atlantic West to East from USA land to land, from Liberty Island, New York, USA to Port Pendennis Marina, Falmouth, UK, was the crew of James Robert Hanssen: Brad Vickers, Dylan Le Valley, Greg Spooner, Jordan Hanssen (all USA), between 10 June – 20 August 2006, in a time of 71 days 3 hr 22 min 35 sec. Editorial: please note the standard syntax and route name for rowing (in the correct order, with no commas and certain
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The first people to row across the Pacific was John Fairfax and Sylvia Cook (both UK), in Britannia II between 26 April 1971 – 22 April 1972. John Fairfax is also the first person to row any ocean solo, after he rowed the Atlantic east to west in Britannia between 20 January – 19 July 1969. In addition, John Fairfax was the first to row two oceans.
In 1922, the British archaeologist Leonard Woolley (later knighted as Sir Leonard Woolley) excavated what is believed to be the first royal cemetery, at Ur in ancient Mesopotamia (modern Iraq). There, Woolley and his team uncovered some 1,800 graves, which dated back as far as 2600 BC. Of these graves, 16 were actually elaborate tombs containing several rooms with spectacular artifacts. Quite notably, the tombs also included the remains of household servants and some prominent members of the ancient court.
The first woman to row two oceans is Kathleen Saville (USA) who (in team with Curtis Saville, USA) rowed in Excalibur across the Atlantic East to West from Casablanca, Morocco to Antigua between 18 March and 10 June 1981, and the Pacific East to West from Callo, Peru to Cairns, Australia, between 4 July and 31 July 1985.