Beijing journalist Xinmin Yan and Qingdao-based sailing promoter Teodora Lazarova are the first China residents to enlist for service on the Qingdao boat in the 07-08 Clipper Round-the-World Yacht Race. Yan will participate in the leg from Fremantle, Australia to Qingdao, where Lazarova will take her place for the Pacific crossing, via Hawaii, to Santa Cruz, California.

Yan attended an open day at Clipper’s UK headquarters and has been an enthusiast ever since. She will focus on covering the race for National Geographic magazine, but so far is thoroughly enjoying her training regimen.  She will set off from Fremantle on 1 January 2008, and arrive in Qingdao with her crewmates in mid-February.

Lazarova has spent the past few years working with ZIM, a Qingdao-based boat manufacturer, during which time she has also been a coordinator of redSAIL magazine and the China Yachting Business Partnership. She has been a keen facilitator for the development of sailing culture in Qingdao, with an emphasis on nurturing the sport at the grass-roots level, particularly in programmes aimed at youth involvement.

Participation in the Clipper Race is well-suited to Lazarova’s hands-on approach - before participating in her leg of the journey, she will journey to the south coast of England for three weeks of intensive training to become familiar with her role and routine as part of a Clipper crew (read Teddy’s blog or see photos here). She will participate in a 45-day leg of the journey through the Pacific Ocean, taking her place among the sailors when the fleet, representing sailing cities that touch every corner of the world’s seas, depart from  Qingdao in late February 2008.

The port visit in Qingdao will be sponsored by Hexagon Metrology, a  Swedish-Chinese joint venture based in China’s sailing city. The company is an industry leader in the manufacture of high-precision measuring equipment, and was eager for the opportunity to promote sailing and to help raise the profile of Qingdao when it is visited next February by sailors and sailing enthusiasts from all over the world.