Another beneficial feature of a high aspect ratio wing besides a smaller tip chord (to minimize vortex losses), is the fact that long, skinny wings are more efficient at producing a given amount of lift for a given amount of drag (higher L/D ratio).

As a wing passes through the air, it deflects the air molecules downward, resulting in an action-reaction force upward (i.e., lift). Together with the pressure differential between the top and the bottom of the wing, this downward deflection and resulting upward force is what defies the effects of gravity. A longer wing involves a larger swath of air, with less perturbation of the air molecules, and so produces the same amount of lift as a shorter wing, but at a smaller cost in drag.

For a crude analogy, think of a short wing pushing down mightily on the air molecules to produce the necessary lift, where a long, skinny wing pushes down gently on more air molecules to get the same lift.

Racing airplanes put minimal drag over everything else, and use short wings with thin, low-cambered sections to disturb as few air molecules as little as possible as they rocket along through the sky.

STOL airplanes and heavy lifters put lift above all else, at the expense of drag, and use slats and flaps and high cambered sections to produce as much lift as possible regardless of the drag penalty. They hit their top speed pretty quickly after take-off!

Sailplanes and long-distance aircraft, OTOH, need enough lift to sustain their weight while at the same time keeping the drag to a minimum. Long, skinny wings are the solution.