Inspiring more women to go offshore

History was made this summer when Wendy Tuck became the first woman to win a round the world yacht race and her sailing success has already inspired more women to consider taking part in this epic challenge.

Wendy Tuck

Following Tuck’s win of the Clipper 2017-18 Round the World Yacht Race, organizers have seen demand for application packs from women increase by 115% for the month of July compared to June. This spike continued into August, with a further jump of 44% on July requests.

It was a landmark year for the Clipper Race as not only did a female skipper take first position in the 40,000 nautical mile race, Nikki Henderson, 25, claimed second place too (above).

While male application requests are still higher than female, the female one-two legacy is hoped to encourage more women to consider taking on this adventure in the 2019-20 edition of the race or in the future.

Says Della Parsons, Clipper Race Crew Recruitment Director, who took part in the race herself in 2009-2010 says: “Having women take the top two spots of our podium is certainly having a positive impact. On a global stage they proved that gender is irrelevant in leadership and if this gets just one more girl dreaming big then these wins have broken barriers beyond just sailing.

“It is rare for men and women to compete together in sport so it’s no surprise that this landmark win has helped shift the balance. Potential recruits have told me seeing Wendy and her team celebrate their victory spurred them on to apply to be crew in the next race. We’ve had occasions when it has been an all-woman room on interview days and this is unprecedented.”

The Clipper Race is the only event which trains everyday people to make six ocean crossings, covering six continents, with 40 percent of crew having no previous sailing experience before signing up. Racing the one design Clipper 70, the twelfth edition of the race starts in Summer 2019.

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Source: Clipper Ventures