The legend of Ellen MacArthur emerged from the darkness of the Atlantic last night and received a welcome that would have drowned out the storms of the Southern ocean. Fireworks, floodlights and flares shone upon this little piece of the Bay of Biscay as MacArthur brought her magnificent Vendee Globe adventure to an end and confirmed second place in the toughest boat race of them all.

The French winner of the race, Michel Desjoyeaux, said yesterday: "Ellen for me is a great mystery. She is 10 years younger than me and she could have beaten me. She has displayed a great deal of courage and determination and has threatened me right to the end."

An ecstatic crowd of more than 200,000 were on hand to greet the youngest (24) and smallest (5 ft 2 in) competitor in the field, their beloved jeune espoire de la voile (sailing's young hope). Some banners bore her favourite message, Ellen - A Donf (go for it).

Hundreds of journalists and an assortment of TV crews battled with the crowds for the best vantage point. A flotilla of boats awaited and helicopters circled for a view of this self-confessed "geek" and solo sailor from the landlocked English county of Derbyshire.

MacArthur's 95-day voyage has been marked by a succession of near disastrous mishaps. Within three days of leaving port she was forced to lance an inflamed finger with a burning hot needle, and on the 30th day awoke to find Kingfisher just 50 ft from an iceberg. Later she dodged 10 in one day.

The lowest point came when she had to climb the mast in winds reaching 45 knots to release the mainsail after Kingfisher had been knocked on to her side. The effort was nearly fatal. "The closest to death I have come," she wrote later in her diary. Just 10 days ago the daggerboard was snapped from the hull when Kingfisher struck a submerged object. MacArthur spent a day hauling the daggerboard, one and a half times her weight, back aboard.