Seattle set to host Clipper Race for tenth anniversary of first visit and returns with team entry

Clipper Race © Clipper Race

Seattle is set to host the Clipper 2025-26 Race as the global sailing event has announced the city will feature on its race route. And for the tenth anniversary of Seattle first hosting the Clipper Race, the city will also be represented on the eleven-month circumnavigation with a 'Seattle' team, which will compete on one of the toughest endurance challenges.

The Clipper Race is the only event of its kind which trains people from all walks of life to become ocean racers. When the event arrives into Seattle in spring 2026, it will be the fifth time the city and Race Partner Seattle Sports Commission has welcomed adventurers following a relentless race across the North Pacific Ocean. Celebrating ten-years of partnership and five visits, Seattle will have featured on the Clipper Race route more times than any other US city.

The year 2026 will be a huge year of international sport for Seattle - with the city set to host six FIFA World Cup matches just two months after welcoming the Clipper Race. The Clipper Race fleet will be based at Bell Harbor for the duration of its stay, with crew set to enjoy the newly redeveloped waterfront just moments from the marina the global adventurers will call home for their week-long stay.

The Washington State stopover will be the final port of call for crew competing on the 'Mighty North Pacific Leg (the sixth leg of the 40,000 nautical mile race). Known as 'The Big One', this stage of the race tests the participants physical and mental endurance. When crossing the North Pacific, crew can face up to Hurricane Force winds, towering waves and freezing temperatures. Crew must battle a feeling of true isolation as on this stretch of ocean they will often be closer to astronauts on the International Space Station than other humans on land.

Nine Washington State locals have so far signed up to compete on various legs on the Clipper 2025-26 Race. Two of these are set to complete the full circumnavigation, one further to sail into their home state on Leg 6 - and another waving goodbye as they embark on the Americas Coast to Coast Leg (Leg 7).

Says Kate Ashley, Clipper Race Head of Partnerships: "On our upcoming edition we will be celebrating ten years of collaboration with Seattle - so it's only fitting that Seattle returns with a team entry. This multi-national team will fly the flag into 14 destinations around the world - and will receive the homecoming of all homecomings when it arrives into Seattle in 2026.

"With four previous stops in Seattle - we know that Seattle and our partners Seattle Sports Commission make the very best hosts for international visits - which is especially welcomed after a tough ocean crossing. We have Race Crew signed up hailing from Washington State and we hope that the news we are coming back to Seattle may inspire more locals to sign up to an adventure of a lifetime and represent the city around the world."

Along with Seattle, other ports that have been announced so far for the Clipper 2025-26 Race are Portsmouth (UK - the event's Race Start and Finish location), Cape Town (South Africa), Qingdao (China), Tongyeong (Korea) and Oban (Scotland). Further port announcements are due in the next month.

Clipper Race x Seattle history

• Clipper 2015-16 Race - first edition to feature Seattle as a Host Port and Team entry
• Clipper 2017-18 Race - the Visit Seattle team entry places second place overall - with its British Skipper, Nikki Henderson, becoming the youngest ever skipper to compete on the Clipper Race
• Clipper 2025-26 Race - Clipper Race and Seattle Sports Commission celebrate ten years of partnership and the fifth visit from the sailing event