Rolex Sydney Hobart Race - Clipper Race to enter 12-strong fleet

by Marina Thomas on 19 Dec 2014 Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race 2014 - The Clipper Round the World Yacht Race has announced that it will include Australian offshore classic the Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race (RSHYR) in its 2015-16 global series after a successful debut last year.

The intention to enter the fleet of twelve Clipper 70s in the 71st edition has just been confirmed by Clipper Race organisers. The RSHYR will form part of the biennial Clipper Race series for a second time. The round-the-world fleet created much interest in 2013 as amateur sailors from over 40 different nationalities competed as part of their 40,000 mile circumnavigation.

Clipper Race Chairman and Founder Sir Robin Knox-Johnston, who was the first person to sail single-handed and non-stop around the world in 1968-69 said: 'We are very excited to include the Sydney Hobart as part of our Australian leg in the 2015-16 Clipper Race series and look forward to submitting our entries when the Notice of Race for the 71st edition is released next year.'

The chance to compete against some of the world’s top sailors in the RSHYR was the highlight for many Clipper Race sailors as part of their global ocean odyssey. There is still time for aspiring Australian crew to sign up for this iconic ‘all-Australian’ Leg which starts in Albany and finishes on the east coast via Sydney and Hobart.

Sir Robin added: 'This coast-to-coast leg is very popular with Australians with a three-race series which includes the Sydney to Hobart classic. No experience necessary, as we provide all the training!'

The majority of pre-race training can be carried out at the new Clipper Race Australia base in Sydney, which also has a boat entered in this year’s 70th RSHYR.

The highly challenging leg will start in Albany, Western Australia at the beginning of December 2015. It will finish in an eastern Australia port in January 2016 following a race from Hobart after the 628-mile RSHYR.

The three-race coast-to-coast series sees constantly changing conditions from brutal to mild and big surf. Crew will be pushed mentally and physically in one of the most inhospitable parts of the planet. This leg includes three crossings of the infamous Bass Strait and demands the very best from all crew.

The Clipper Race is unique in that it trains novices and amateur sailors to take on the world’s most challenging oceans. Crew come from all walks of life, are aged 18 to 70 plus, and nearly half are women.

The next edition of Clipper Race will start from the UK in August 2015 and will return there in July 2016. It will be the tenth Anniversary series and the second circumnavigation for the Clipper 70 fleet. Crew places are more than 80 per cent full, but it is not too late to apply.

Five hundred crew are now signed up from 28 nationalities, including the UK, Australia, Canada, USA, New Zealand, Germany, Finland, Sweden and more. The race will also welcome its first ever crew members from South Korea, Colombia, Latvia and Bulgaria.

This year, a Clipper 68 Events yacht will compete in the 70th edition of the event, with future and past Clipper Race sailors competing.

The yacht is one of two boats used for training future round the world crew at the Clipper Race’s Sydney base and has already completed four circumnavigations in previous Clipper Race editions.

Australians interested in signing up for the Clipper 2015-16 Race, including the Australia leg which includes the 71st RSHYR can contact the Clipper Race Australia base in Sydney, tel: +61 (0) 2 9363 2020 or via the web Rolex Sydney Hobart website