The 11 boats set course for Uruguay after a spectacular departure from the marina 

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On 15 September 2023.- A farewell in style for the Clipper round the world regatta fleet this Friday in Puerto Sherry and the bay of Cadiz, where S-SW winds of 15 knots of average intensity set the pace for the eleven identical boats with their sights set on Uruguay. The farewell ceremony for the boats began at midday, when the boats cast off at the pontoons of Puerto Sherry to leave the marina mouth in a beautiful parade of sails and crews.

Already at sea, the teams were showing off in front of the tower and the promenade of the marina, roaring in front of the users and citizens who came to Puerto Sherry to see them off. At three o’clock in the afternoon, as planned, the race committee sounded the starting horn and it was time to leave behind the days spent on the coast of Puerto Sherry and begin to make decisions towards the goal.

“It has been wonderful to have the Clipper Race here, we are very happy, they have been intense days of hard work but it has been worth it. The organisers have expressed their satisfaction and gratitude for the way this first stopover in Spain in the history of the regatta has gone, so we are confident of repeating it. I am convinced that apart from the economic impact it has had, the social and image impact is very important, and I am sure that this will have a very important return in the medium term for the city and the province of Cadiz”, declares Nicolás Figueras, general manager of Puerto Sherry, enthusiastically.

About the Clipper RAce

The Clipper Round the World Yacht Race was founded in 1996 by Sir Robin Knox-Johnston, the first person to sail solo, non-stop around the world in 1968-69. It is the only event of its kind where people from all walks of life are trained to become ocean sailors, and many have no previous sailing experience before signing up for the four levels of intensive pre-race training. Led by a professional skipper and first mate, sailors can complete the eleven-month circumnavigation or try one or more legs.

It is an event in which more than 700 people aged between 18 and 71, of 55 nationalities and from a wide range of professional backgrounds, are taking part in a fleet of 70-foot ocean racing yachts. Over the next eleven months, the teams will face some of the toughest and most varied conditions as they travel to some of the most remote and inhospitable places on the planet. The eleven participating boats are crewed by a professional skipper, a first mate and an amateur crew, who will together cover 40,000 miles visiting six continents in eleven months and eight legs. Spain has nine participants in the regatta.

Divided into eight legs and 14 individual races, the 2023-24 edition will have the following route  

Leg 1- Portsmouth, UK – Puerto Sherry, Andalucia, Spain – Punta Del Este, Uruguay

Leg 2- Punta Del Este, Uruguay – Cape Town, South Africa 

Leg 3- Cape Town, South Africa – Fremantle, Australia

Leg 4- Fremantle, Australia – Newcastle, Australia – Airlie Beach, Australia

Leg 5- Airlie Beach, Australia – Ha Long Bay, Vietnam – Zhuhai, China

Leg 6- Zhuhai, China – Qingdao, China – Seattle, USA.

Leg 7- Seattle, USA – Seattle, USA – Panama Canal, Washington, DC, USA  

Leg 8- Washington, DC, USA – Oban, Scotland – Portsmouth, UK

To follow the teams throughout the race, via @clipperrace or www.clipperroundtheworld.com

Images of the event