Derry-Londonderry Duo Complete Epic Clipper Race Round-The-World Voyage

29th July 2018

MacDara Conroy

An enthusiastic welcome for HotelPlanner.com in Liverpool Credit: Clipper Ventures

#ClipperRace - Derry-Londonderry-born Clipper Race skipper Conall Morrison and round-the-world crew member Roseann McGlinchey have arrived in Liverpool, completing their epic 11-month, 40,000-nautical-mile circumnavigation of the globe.

A week after starting the 13th and final race, the Clipper Race fleet arrived in Liverpool, thrilling the thousands of people that lined the River Mersey with a spectacular sprint finish on Saturday 28 July.

Fireworks and confetti cannons turned the grey sky into a riot of colour when Morrison and McGlinchey guided their HotelPlanner.com boat into the Royal Albert Dock to bring their adventure to an end.

“It feels just like yesterday we were here in Liverpool. It hasn’t quite sunk in yet how far we have come and what we have achieved,” said Morrison.

“It’s been an adventure and one that I will remember and cherish always.”

“HotelPlanner.com HotelPlanner.com supporters at the race finish in Liverpool

McGlinchey added: “We’ve gone round the world! Who does this stuff?

“The crowd waving us in was just amazing. The support right the way round has been incredible but it was something special coming back to where it all started.

“Time has flown. With each leg this team has felt more and more like family. The bond we have is incredible. I’ve definitely changed, I think for the better.”

As previously reported on Afloat.ie, Sanya Serenity Coast claimed the overall victory in the Clipper 2017-18 Race, making skipper Wendy Tuck the first woman in history to win a round-the-world yacht race.

Twenty-five-year-old British sailor Nikki Henderson, the youngest skipper in the 22-year history of the Clipper Race, placed second overall with her team Visit Seattle to complete a one-two female finish.

The sprint finish into Liverpool wrapped up a race which began in Liverpool in August of last year. After crossing six oceans with 13 stopovers on five different continents, and seeing mother nature at her most raw — including hurricane-force winds and 14-metre waves in the North Pacific — the 11 teams are now home, full of stories to last a lifetime.

Over the past 22 years, more than 5,000 people have become ocean racers through the Clipper Race, though still more people have climbed Mount Everest than have gone around the world under sail.

Perhaps you could help beat that number and be a part of the next edition, the Clipper 2019-20 Race, which due to begin next summer.

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MacDara Conroy

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MacDara Conroy is a contributor covering all things on the water, from boating and wildlife to science and business

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About the Clipper Round the World Yacht Race

The Clipper Round the World Yacht Race is undoubtedly one of the greatest ocean adventures on the planet, also regarded as one of its toughest endurance challenges. Taking almost a year to complete, it consists of eleven teams competing against each other on the world’s largest matched fleet of 70-foot ocean racing yachts.

The Clipper Race was established in 1996 by Sir Robin Knox-Johnston, the first person to sail solo, non-stop, around the world in 1968-69. His aim was to allow anyone, regardless of previous sailing experience, the chance to embrace the thrill of ocean racing; it is the only event of its kind for amateur sailors. Around 40 per cent of crew are novices and have never sailed before starting a comprehensive training programme ahead of their adventure.

This unique challenge brings together everyone from chief executives to train drivers, nurses and firefighters, farmers, airline pilots and students, from age 18 upwards, to take on Mother Nature’s toughest and most remote conditions. There is no upper age limit, the oldest competitor to date is 76.

Now in its twelfth edition, the Clipper 2019-20 Race started from London, UK, on 02 September 2019.