Nikki Henderson was not even born when Tracy Edwards made history by skippering an all-female crew around the world in 1989. But it is fair to say that the glass ceiling that was broken on that epic Whitbread Round the World race (as it was then called) made it possible for women like this 25-year-old to pursue their dreams.

Earlier this year, Ms Henderson became the youngest skipper in the Clipper Round the World Race and she is now in charge of the boat from that epic 1989 race, Maiden.

After finishing the race in second place, Ms Edwards sold the 58-foot yacht. She was devastated to find the boat had been abandoned in the Indian Ocean and after years putting funding together, Maiden was brought back to the UK in 2017 for restoration.

One of the sponsors was Princess Haya Bint Al Hussein, the daughter of King Hussein of Jordan – the visionary who had helped Ms Edwards put together her original Whitbread challenge. But this time, the focus is on a much greater goal: ‘The Maiden Factor’ will utilise the high-profile yacht to raise funds and awareness for girls’ education, as they spend three years going around the world in a collaborative campaign with six charities.

The campaign website points out that 130 million girls worldwide are currently denied an education.

Ms Henderson, her hands caked with white paint from the hull, was chosen last September to skipper Maiden from the UK to Jordan then on to Dubai and Mumbai.

“I’ve sailed all my adult life and have worked in sailing since I was 16,” she said, wedged in the narrow corridor of the no-frills interior, admitting that Ms Edwards had managed to change the stereotype of women on boats being cooks.

Her legacy has lived on and created opportunities for me

“It is slowly changing. I think we have to be patient and keep at it. We have to believe in ourselves as women and believe that we can do as well as men. I think that the biggest barrier is our self-belief. Women in sport is a very talked-about subject right now, so getting sponsorship and getting your name out there is getting easier. People want to be involved in cutting-edge themes and women in sport is one of those,” she told Times of Malta.

Unlike sports, where women play other women, sailing is a mixed sport where women can compete alongside men – or against them.

After maintenance at the Manoel Island Yacht Yard, the boat will go through the Suez Canal and past Somalia – with four armed guards on board ­ – across the Indian Ocean to India. Once there, they will work with some of the partner organisations to promote the idea of education for women, inspired by the idea of “nine women sailing around the world in a male-dominated industry”.

Crew member Amelia Ralphs, 21, has already skippered a Transatlantic boat and happily admits that she had been inspired by Ms Edwards from an early age: “Her legacy has lived on and created opportunities for me… My bosses and role models in later life were also inspired by her. Tracy is still one of the reasons why people like me and Nikki were able to walk into the sailing industry at 16, confident that – although not everyone would agree with it – we are going to have a go!”

Ms Ralphs admits that she has sailed on both mixed and all-women crew with equal enthusiasm and it was the fact that Maiden was going to be all-women that drew her to the project.

Matilda Ajanko, another of the nine-member crew, admitted that there were not that many opportunities to sail around the world and that she leaped at the chance.

“I studied anthropology and human rights, and never thought that I would be able to combine sailing with that interest. So this job was marvellous!

“It is not easy to be paid to sail all the time – so my advice would be to get a trade. Amelia is an engineer and I am a rigger,” she said.

In a world growing ever more sensitive to the #MeToo movement, it is interesting to hear that in spite of the male-dominated environment, the crew have not experienced – or heard of – any harassment or put-downs.

“I have always found that guys are very willing to help women to work their way up in the industry – out of the kindness of their heart. That is one of the biggest changes we have seen.”

Ms Ajanko feels that perhaps the pendulum is still swinging to an extreme and that it will be a while until it reaches a balance “somewhere in the middle”.

“We are in very unique position as we are able to work alongside men. We often forget how special that opportunity is,” she said.

Ms Henderson will not have the luxury of being able to choose her own crew – matching their personalities together as a team – but she had one last piece of advice to share: “I hope that throughout my life I can show the world what an amazing place a boat is for learning about people, about team dynamics and leadership. It is a unique environment because you are in such a small space in such an extreme environment and you cannot leave and go home. It really brings out people’s characters.”

www.themaidenfactor.org/Educate

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