Four British rowers who went missing during a charity rowing race across the Indian Ocean have made contact with the organisers of the race.

The team, British expatriates who live in New Zealand, called a patrol boat this morning on their VHS radio, after their GPS and satellite phone both broke 71 days into the race.

They had been out of contact since last Friday, when they were reported to be 500 miles from the finish line in Mauritius, off the coast of Africa.

After the crew - Tom Wigram, 30, Matthew Hampel, 32, Chris ‘Billy’ Gammon, 35 and former Royal Navy Seaman Pete Staples, 38 – made contact, a plane spotted them about 300 km from their destination.

Rebecca Wigram, Tom's wife said it was a huge relief.

"I checked a text message from my little sister saying they have been found and then I rang the duty officer and he said he'd been trying to call me," she said.

She said the men were in high spirits.

The 3,100 nautical mile Indian Ocean Rowing Race, which began on April 19, was an inaugural race across the Indian Ocean. Advertised as the world’s longest rowing race, 11 crews – including sculls, pairs, fours and an eight – raced from Geraldton in Western Australia to the small island nation of Mauritius. Five retired from the race before it finished.

Last Friday a British crew – Nick and Phil McCorry, 25 and 24, Matt Hellier, 20, from Bexhill, East Sussex, and Ian Allen, 25, from Sevenoaks, in Kent – won the race after 68 days at sea.

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