An international fleet of some 70 Tall Ships will be in Liverpool, UK, next week for the start of this year’s Tall Ships’ Races. Some of the largest and most glamorous square rigged ‘Class A’ ships will be gathering for the annual event that this year takes the fleet from Liverpool to Maløy and then Bergen in Norway and then on to Den Helder in the Netherlands.

The annual event is organised by Sail Training International, and supported by the city of Antwerp, as a means to showcase the adventure activity of offshore sailing that is sail training. The benefits to the young that take part are varied and many but to the young who take part it is an exciting adventure where they can meet some 3000+ like-minded contemporaries.

Ships that are taking part this year include :

# The ever popular Mexican Cuauhtémoc who will attract a crowd, particularly when she arrives in port with her crew manning the yards;

# New participant in the event, the Brazilian Tall Ship Cisne Branco, will bring another exotic element to the event;

# Lord Nelson, a ship that provides disabled people, including those in wheelchairs, equal opportunities on board. This year the first race will be crewed by an all-female crew from the girl guides;

# The small but always lively Shabab Oman from the Sultanate of Oman with her friendly crew and British captain;

# The unusually rigged Pelican whose hull is derived from the clippers of the late 19th century and her rig based on the Barbary Coast pirate ships;

# The ever popular Mir from Russia – a firm favourite to win any race she enters;

# The three Norwegian ships Christian Radich, Statsraad Lehmkuhl and Sørlandet who will always be competing for the race title;

# Capitan Miranda from Uruguay whose band is always a strong feature of the crew parade.

All of the ships, whether they are the large Class A ships or the smaller yachts and traditional boats, will be crewed by at least 50 percent young people, aged between 15 and 25 years old. Many of these will have taken part before but just as many will never have sailed before. The race before them is daunting so many will be nervous and excited in equal measure. They will live together, crew the ship in watches and help keep the ship sailing at her best for some ten days, many of which well away from the sight of land. Some will suffer from sea-sickness and some will get home-sick but all of them will arrive in port after the race on a high of adrenalin and success for having played a key role in sailing their vessel.

Each port will play host to the 65+ ships and 3000+ crew members, in a riot of colour and festivities. The ports each have their own charm, from the large and bustling city of Liverpool to the tiny Maløy, the smallest town ever to have hosted the event with its 4000 residents. A feature of every port is the crew parade through the streets and prize givings, with Den Helder playing host to the final prize giving where the prestigious Sail Training International Friendship Trophy is awarded. This beautiful solid Armada dish epitomises the objective of the races and is awarded to the vessel that, in the opinion of the entire race fleet through a secret ballot, has done most to help further international understanding and friendship during the races.

The Tall Ships’ Races are organised by Sail Training International and supported by the City, Port and Province of Antwerp.