The Duke of Edinburgh has visited the Scottish capital’s entry in the Clipper 09-10 Round the World Yacht Race. The crew and local dignitaries who had lined up on board Edinburgh Inspiring Capital were presented to Prince Philip before he headed below decks for a tour of the boat, accompanied by Sir Robin Knox-Johnston, the race’s founder and chairman.

A group of seven young people from Edinburgh, the Capital Crew, will be racing as part of the crew for the 35,000-mile race which starts on 13 September from the Humber on the east coast of the UK. Each of them will undertake a leg, their participation facilitated by the Duke of Edinburgh Award and Chairman of the Trustees, Sir Tom Farmer, who was also on board to welcome the royal visitor. The Capital Crew’s participation will help them qualify for the Duke of Edinburgh Gold Award.

Edinburgh Inspiring Capital will remain at Ocean Terminal in the Port of Leith until Monday 17 August when she will depart for the final training week before the start of the ten-month long Clipper Round the World Yacht Race. The yacht will be open to the public on Thursday 13, Friday 14, Saturday 15 and Sunday 16 August so people from Edinburgh can meet the crew and get a flavour of what life will be like for these brave adventurers on board the 68-foot stripped down racing yacht as they undertake the challenge of a lifetime.

More than 430 people from 35 nationalities and drawn from all walks of life will compete in the Clipper 09-10 Race, the only global ocean race for non-professional sailors. Among the 44-strong Edinburgh Inspiring Capital team are a plumber, managing director, nurse, retired teacher, property developer, accountant, naval architect.

The yacht will form the centrepiece of a year-long campaign by the Destination Edinburgh Marketing Alliance (DEMA) to promote Edinburgh to a worldwide audience as an exciting and vibrant city and an excellent location in which to visit, invest, live, work and study.