SINGAPORE: Eight out of the ten teams competing in the Clipper 07-08 Round the World Yacht Race have arrived in Singapore.

The New York team won this part of the race, which started from Fremantle, Australia and ended at Horsburgh Lighthouse - off the east coast of Singapore. The Uniquely Singapore Clipper came in seventh.

Being in the middle of the ocean for months at length certainly has its ups and downs.

Quah Chee Seng, crew member of Uniquely Singapore, said: "Big seas, big waves, but the most major concern right now is sea sickness. It is getting progressively better, but still a major concern."

Another challenge is that Uniquely Singapore has to manage with frequent crew changes during different legs.

For example, between Fremantle and Singapore, the clipper was sailing with ten nationalities on-board, mostly from ASEAN countries.

The ASEAN crew is supported by the ASEAN Youth Fund and Singapore's Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Mark Preedy, skipper of Uniquely Singapore, said: "To me, that is the biggest challenge and ever since the training, we've tried to look at the commonalities of the people, and really the way to run the boat is allowing everybody the possibility to do anything and everything on the boat."

The yachts are currently berthed at Batam, but will sail into Marina At Keppel Bay on Saturday, 19 January, at 12.05pm. Their arrival will coincide with the official opening of the marina.

Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong will officiate at the opening and a welcome party has been organised for the teams and the public.

Wang Look Fung, General Manager of Group Corporate Communications, Keppel Corporation, said: "They can go onto Keppel Island - which is actually an exclusive private island, but it'll be open that day to the public - where they can walk around the promenade and watch this whole fleet coming in. It would be a spectacular sight."

Singapore is the fifth of 14 cities to welcome the clippers, which are in a 10-month-long race that ends in July. The clippers will leave Singapore on 27 January for Qingdao.

On the sixth leg of the race, which is from Santa Cruz in California to Panama and Jamaica, 61-year-old Tan Soo Khoong will join the Uniquely Singapore crew.

Mr Tan said: "I exercise regularly so that is not a problem. The most difficult part is to put your name in the application form. Once the decision is made, the rest will come in naturally."

If you think you have got what it takes to sail on the open seas, there will be a recruitment drive for people to join the 09-10 race during the stopover in Singapore.


- CNA/so