13 Sailors from 9 Countries (Italy, France, Great Britain, Australia, Canada, Russia, USA, Japan, and South Africa look to be the components of the Around Alone race fleet.
Still, there are 3 mariners who will start out the time penalties. The time penalty stems from the 12 September 1200 deadline. Any boat not in Charleston by this time will draw an hour for hour penalty.
One racer already knows the size of this penalty. Marc Thiercelin will receive a 4 hour 4 minute and 4 second penalty for his tardiness. So, as the fleet crosses the start line, Thiercelin's elapsed time will in effect be: 4 hours, 4 minutes and 4 seconds. Still, this is Around Alone and he has 27,000 miles to make up for this.
Two other boats are not yet in Charleston. Robin Davie and his Class II entry South Carolina are in the midst of a 2000 mile qualifying voyage. His penalty will be likely over a week. Also, still en route is Class II's Viktor Yazkov. His penalty will also be a large one.