Race to Qingdao gets underway

Race 9, from Singapore to Qingdao, China started at 0730 local time this morning in Singapore (2330 UTC).

After the Le Mans start, Old Pulteney took an early lead in the race north to the Olympic Sailing City of Qingdao.

The race from Singapore to China is one of extremes. The heat below decks will be difficult to cope with in the early stages and it will stay with them until they near Taiwan and the entrance to the Yellow Sea. The fleet will meet challenging head winds that provide the most extreme conditions of the race and, as the teams head back into a Northern Hemisphere winter, the temperatures will quickly plummet. The fleet will arrive to a spectacular welcome from the people of Qingdao. This will be the fifth time the Clipper Race has visited the city – which was home to the sailing events of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games.

The fleet is expected to arrive in Qingdao, China between 7-9 March.