Global Ocean Race 2011-12- Hannah Jenner first female skipper to enter

by Oliver Dewar on 18 Mar 2010 The Global Ocean Race 2011-12 (GOR) can announce that entry #14 – and the first female skipper – has signed up to compete in the double-handed circumnavigation for Class40’s. The highly-experienced British yachtswoman, Hannah Jenner, is the fourth UK-based campaign to enter the event which includes teams from 11 different nations.

Hannah Jenner has already logged around 130,000 miles of sailing which including a circumnavigation as skipper of fully-crewed Glasgow: Scotland with Style in the Clipper 07-09 Round The World Race taking third place overall in a fleet of ten yachts. The 29 year-old yachtswoman and University of Southampton graduate has also skippered private yachts for racing and delivery including two transatlantics in the Atlantic Rally for Cruisers (ARC) with valuable, short-handed experience onboard IMOCA Open 60’s including a 5,000 mile North Atlantic crossing on Dee Caffari’s Aviva (a photo gallery of Hannah can be viewed here).

For Jenner, a second circumnavigation on a double-handed Class40 is a significant challenge. 'It looks like I am about to get very busy!' she comments. 'I followed the first edition of the Global Ocean Race closely and am very excited to have secured my entry into the 2011-12 event.' Jenner is already familiar with Class40's and is looking forward to racing one competitively. 'They are fantastic yachts and I can't wait to get the campaign underway and go for my second circumnavigation,' she adds. 'The Global Ocean Race provides the perfect opportunity to advance my career into the world of short-handed sailing.'

Earlier this week, Jenner was appointed skipper of Cork in the Clipper 09-10 Round The World Race – the replacement yacht for the original Cork that grounded on a submerged reef in the Java Sea on January 14th and had to be abandoned - and will race for the remainder of the circumnavigation bringing the yacht back to Europe. Despite a hectic schedule and departure to join the Clipper fleet in San Francisco at the end of this month, Jenner’s plans for the GOR are already forming. 'The Global Ocean Race entry may be a two-girl campaign,' she explained earlier this week. 'But my background is in training people to race around the world and achieve things that they never thought were possible,' she continues.

Throughout her sailing career, Jenner has been deeply involved in the logistics behind a successful racing campaign and throughout her term as a skipper in the Clipper Race, she was responsible for guiding 39 amateur crew through every aspect of pre-race preparation and all training connected with offshore sailing: boat preparation; sail handling; onboard maintenance; emergency medical instruction; weather routing and navigation. 'If possible, I might be able to provide opportunities for others to get involved in the fantastic sport of ocean racing,' she adds.

The potential plan would be to take a different crew member on each leg of the GOR – a feature that is built-in to the race rules – having chosen her co-skippers after extensive trials followed by intensive offshore training. 'I would also hope to involve other young people in the pre-race preparation and logistics with the overall aim of breaking down the barriers within the sport of sailing.'

For Race Director of the GOR, Josh Hall, Jenner’s place on the start line is excellent news for the event. 'It is a great pleasure to welcome Hannah’s entry in the race. She has the perfect background, character and experience to take on this challenge and the race provides her with the perfect platform to advance an already enviable sailing career.'

http://portimaoglobaloceanrace.com