About 100 young people recovering from cancer are taking to the UK’s seas in a confidence-building project run by yachtswoman Dame Ellen MacArthur.
Round Britain 2017, organized by the Ellen MacArthur Cancer Trust, will take place between May and September and will visit more 60 towns and cities.
Young people aged eight to 24 will be taking part, in relays.
Dame Ellen, founding patron of the charity, broke a record for the fastest solo circumnavigation of the world.
One of those taking part, Hannah Spencer, said she wouldn’t be here without the trust.
The 23-year-old, from Belper, Derbyshire, was diagnosed with chronic myeloid leukaemia in 2009 and will work as a volunteer mate on the voyage.
The trust has had a massive impact on her life and she definitely wouldn’t be here without them, she said.
Crew member Tom Roberts, from Ripley, North Yorkshire, was diagnosed with Ewing’s sarcoma – a form of bone cancer in the spine – on his 16th birthday and has been involved with the trust since 2010,
He said he was taking part in the challenge to ensure that others continue to benefit from the trust the same way I have.
The sailing journey takes in Cowes, Cardiff, Glasgow, Belfast, Plymouth, Bristol, Liverpool, Edinburgh, Newcastle, Hull, London and Southampton.
The crew will visit cancer treatment centres where they will meet other young people who are still in recovery.
