Volvo Ocean Race team Puma (Photo : Reuters)
After the victory of the Dongfeng Race Team in the recent leg of the Volvo Ocean Race 2014-15, a group of young Chinese sailing enthusiasts met with Australian Liz Wardley, who is the watch captain of Team SCA.
Wardley's crew is one of the seven teams competing in the Volvo Ocean Race and is the first professional all-women's team to compete in the prestigious sailing race.
Wardley was clearly pleased by the experience, as she told reporters that "it was a delight to meet with children who are at the beginning of a life-long journey with sailing."
The young group consisted of 35 keen sailors, who were all below the age of 15 years and take to the water on Optimist dinghies. All of the Chinese participants had joined the event from various locations throughout the nation, as they were seeking to absorb the expert advice and extensive experience shared by the Australian sailing athlete.
The teenage attendees possessed ambitions of one day becoming professional, and recognized the developmental value in this week's meet-and-greet event.
In addition to the origin of the historic Team SCA crew, Wardley spoke about her experience onboard Amer Sports Too, which was also an all-female crew that competed in the 2001-2002 round of the Volvo Ocean Race. Wardley's exceptional proficiency had become acknowledged by that stage, as she was selected as one of the first five crew members aboard Team SCA.
The recruitment process for Team SCA was intensive, with the final 13 chosen from a pool of 250 candidates who were from across the world.
