The first race took place in 1996 with the Clipper 60 fleet departing from Plymouth for a westward circumnavigation with the first stop at Madeira, Fort Lauderdale, Panama, Galapagos, Hawaii, Yokohama, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Singapore, Seychelles, Durban, Cape Town, Salvador (Brazil), the Azores and back to Plymouth. The 1998 race largely followed the same route as the 1996 race. It was won by Alex Thomson, who was the youngest skipper to win a round the world yacht race at just 24. The 2000 race started in Portsmouth harbour. The stop in the Azores was replaced by one in New York City and to compensate for the extra distance the Seychelles to Durban to Cape Town leg was reduced to Mauritius to Cape Town. The 2002 race was the fourth and final circumnavigation for the Clipper 60 fleet. Three of the boats were renamed, and international cities Hong Kong, Cape Town and New York were added to the race. The start point was moved to Liverpool, and an estimated 40,000 spectators came to see the boats off despite a 24-hour delay due to storms in the Irish Sea.