Although there is some way still to go, Clive explained that the next steps for the RYA was to run Mandarin Instructor Training Schemes to provide enough high quality, RYA qualified instructors in China to deliver training of all levels domestically before looking to grow the number of training centres in the country.

The Clipper Race has already trained over 80 Chinese crew members, the fourth best represented nationality in the current edition, to take part in the biggest round the world yacht race which takes eleven months to complete and spans some 40,000 nautical miles across six oceans.

Vicky Song, the first Chinese female to circumnavigate the globe when she took part in the Clipper 2013-14 Race, has since become a sailing household name in China. After speaking at the UK China Sailing Industry Cooperation Forum about her experiences of Clipper Race training, she said: "I hope I can help to engage Chinese people with sailing through my experience in the Clipper Race, and I hope I can promote the development of the sailing industry in China, that's my biggest passion. We need to embrace new ideas and I hope I can help to support in these areas and contribute to youth training."

The GREAT Britain Campaign is the UK Government's most ambitious marketing initiative which showcases the very best of what the UK has to offer in order to encourage the world to visit, study and do business with the UK. For the GREAT Britain campaign, the Clipper 2017-18 Race will be about projecting Britain's values, as much as opportunities for business.

The GREAT Britain campaign, which first partnered with the Clipper Race in 2013, stands side by side with teams and crew from across the world to project everything the UK does best in business, education, and prosperity.

The GREAT branded yacht, which will carry the slogan Welcome to GREAT Britain & Northern Ireland across both sides of its hull, allows the UK to boldly promote itself as a creative, authentic and welcoming nation everywhere it goes whilst continuing on its journey producing high-quality return on investment for the UK.