Clipper Ventures is the only organisation in the world to offer the opportunity for non-professional sailors to compete in a round the world yacht race. Off the water it is much more than a sailing race and is used as a global marketing tool to promote trade, inward investment and tourism ambitions.

The current Clipper Round the World Yacht Race is the eighth running of the event that was set up by British sailing legend, Sir Robin Knox-Johnston, the first man to sail solo and non-stop around the world more than 40 years ago. Now, as chairman of Clipper Ventures Plc, he is at the forefront of promoting round the world yacht racing. Clipper Ventures Plc, the marine events company he founded in 1995, is focused on developing and promoting major events capable of attracting significant participation, income, media coverage and associated sponsorship revenue. As well as operating the Clipper Race it also has successful Training and Events divisions and owns and operates the solo round the world race, VELUX5OCEANS.

Sir Robin founded the company on the premise that sailing should be made available to everyone, regardless of age or experience. Almost 3,000 people have now competed in the event ‘raced by people like you’ and in Clipper 11-12 nearly 500 more from more than 40 nations are currently taking part in the challenge of a lifetime. They are aged between 18 and 70+ and have professions as diverse as students, rugby players, nurses, accountants, barristers, engineers, train drivers, IT specialists, florists and even members of the clergy.

As well as the power to change the lives of the people who take part, this unique event has transformed the perceptions and prospects for the participating global cities, regions and countries. It creates a powerful sponsorship platform at ports of call around the world where our destination sponsors and their partners can network together to develop international trade, promote tourism and celebrate culture. Significant trade deals have been signed, tourism enquiries generated and powerful economic impact delivered on top of extensive international media attention.

The growing team behind the Clipper Race, Clipper Training, Clipper Events and the VELUX5OCEANS is highly professional, dynamic, hard-working and fun. Our headquarters in Gosport is right on the waterfront, overlooking Portsmouth Harbour, HMS Victory and the Historic Dockyard.