This month's "MainSail" comes from the 2008 Star World Championships hosted in Coconut Grove, Miami. The Star boat is a classic design that has stood the test of time attracting some of sailing's greats, despite having been first launched nearly 100 years ago. Host Shirley Robertson delves into the history of this class and discovers what keeps drawing the competitors back, also climbing aboard with British Olympic hopefuls Iain Percy and Andrew Simpson during a practise session. Alongside a round up of the sailing news from around the globe, "MainSail" also brings viewers all the drama from the Rolex Farr 40 World Championships off the coast of Miami. Never a disappointment, this class provides some of the closest inshore racing in the world. With a fleet littered with Olympians, America's Cup sailors and offshore veterans, predicting the winner is anyone's guess.

This month MainSail comes from China for the China Sea Race, the pre-eminent sailing contest in the region and one of the oldest yacht races in Asia. Hosted by the historical Hong Kong Yacht Club, the race covers 565 nautical miles from the former British colony to Subic Bay in the Phillipines. MainSail's Shirley Robertson will introduce all the action as well as give viewers an insight into the potential winners. From on-board Chris Mead's Corby 43 "Full Metal Jacket", Shirley will be speaking to and sailing with one of the top crews in the race.

Following on from February's feature on the Irish Volvo Ocean Race team, Shirley also travels inland to Zhuhai to follow the construction process of the team's boat, and will investigate China's burgeoning Yacht building industry. Catch up with her and skipper Ian Walker and find out all about the latest boat, being built at break-neck speed on the Chinese mainland.

This month MainSail comes from the St. Maarten Heineken Regatta, featuring big boats big wind and big, big parties. Over 40 countries are represented as the Caribbean sailing season gets into its stride. A new breed of performance catamarans will be showcased - the "Gunboats" are set to make this regatta the most exciting in many years. Host Shirley Robertson will be onboard one of these new machines as she enjoys the relaxed atmosphere.

She'll also be onboard the ‘Queen Of The Fleet', Peter Harrison's ‘Sojana'. This 105 foot Bruce Farr designed yacht will be turning heads at the Caribbean curtain raiser. March's Mainsail also takes a look at the successful charter industry that makes this part of the world a must for social sailors.

Also featured is the launch of this year's big transatlantic race, the Artemis Transat. Mainsail hears from some of the greats of offshore racing including Dame Ellen Macarthur and Mike Golding OBE.

MainSail presenter and double Olympic gold medallist, Shirley Robertson, visits Thailand for the Phuket King's Cup Regatta, Asia's biggest and most popular sailing event. More than a regatta, the week-long event consists of great parties, great sailing and lots of fun.

We go racing aboard ‘Mandrake' the Fred Kinmouth and Nick Burns owned Mills 51, and it's something of a family affair on-board - the tactician is none other than Jamie Boag, Shirley's husband and father to her twins. See how Mandrake fares against the other exciting boats in the fleet including Frank Pong's ‘Jelik'.

We examine the growth of sailing in Thailand and Phuket in detail. Shirley speaks to Gulu Lalvani, the man responsible for building the Royal Phuket Marina, the home of the fleet for the duration of the King's Cup Regatta - find out what the future holds for sailing in this exciting part of South East Asia.

We also examine the flourishing interest in boats of all kinds as Shirley visits the Phuket International Boat Show, the biggest in the region with an annual turnover of thirty million U.S. Dollars.

NEWS

Including the latest on the America's Cup debate, plus an update on the Barcelona World Race from on-board Hugo Boss

Catch all the action from the 2007 Rolex Sydney to Hobart race. Over the past 62 years, the Rolex Sydney Hobart has become an icon of Australia's summer sport. No yachting event in the world attracts such huge media coverage - except, of course, the America's Cup and the Volvo Ocean Race. And the others only happen every four or five years! We'll bring you action and reaction from all winners and losers.

History has been made at the China Cup in Shenzhen - it's the first ever international big boat regatta hosted in mainland China. The Chinese are taking to yachting in a big way, after their entry in the America's Cup and the arrival of Olympic sailing in Qingdao. This new event is also on a grand scale with a promised budget up to $40 million over the next three years. It's an impressive achievement in a country that has so far had little to do with yacht racing, but as the Chinese economy booms, everything seems possible.

MainSail presenter, Shirley Robertson joins an international women's team in the first race of the China Cup, from Hong Kong to Shenzhen. Robertson, an Olympic helmswoman, takes the wheel of their 40.7 Beneteau, one of ten identical yachts bought by the event to attract teams from countries around the world, including Japan, Brazil and France. Once in Shenzhen, Robertson interviews one of the driving forces behind the growth in Chinese sailing - Mr Li Qanhai, Vice President of the Chinese Yachting Association.

A fleet of 55 boats competes in two days of inshore racing at Longcheer Yacht Club in Shenzhen. Robertson gets on board with Hong Kong industrialist Frank Pong, the honorary chairman of the China Team in the America's Cup, for his views on this historic event. MainSail also interviews the event organizer David Zhong to hear his ambitious plans for the future of the event.

The China Cup is not just a sailing regatta. There are many associated cultural and sporting events taking place at the same time, all staged with great showmanship. MainSail checks out the modern art exhibition, showcasing some of China's foremost artists and asks the director of Strategic Planning for the China Cup Xiao Yu why they wanted to make this more than a sailing regatta.

The Chinese have stamped their mark on international yacht racing in a truly unique way.

This month MainSail starts the Mediterranean racing season in the Bay of Naples. Presenter, Shirley Robertson, reports from Rolex Capri Sailing Week, which features a record fleet of 51 entries. The regatta is played out against the stunning backdrop of the Italian island of Capri, which has long been a playground for the rich and famous, from Roman emperors to Hollywood film stars.

JIM RICHARDSON
The Farr 40s are one of the most popular classes for owner/drivers, who get the chance to compete in top international regattas, steering their own yacht, instead of hiring in a professional to take the wheel. Shirley Robertson gets on board ‘Barking Mad' with American owner Jim Richardson, a two-time World Champion. Richardson is on the helm, but has the expert advice of Volvo Ocean race skipper Bouwe Bekking, who calls tactics.

MASSIMO MASSACCESI
Shirley Robertson interviews the President of the Yacht Club Capri, which jointly hosts this event with the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda of Sardinia. Robertson talks to Massimo Massaccesi about this stylish event and about the beautiful island of Capri.

LEONARDO FERRAGAMO
Another owner/driver class in this event is the Swan 45s. Nautor's Swan are known for their luxury cruising yachts, which also have the speed to compete in top international races. The Swan 45 is their most competitive yacht and Shirley Robertson tries out her helming skills on Cuordileone, owned by the chairman of the Nautor Group, Leonardo Ferragamo. Rolex Capri Sailing Week is also known for its social events. Louise Moran reports from the Certosa di San Giacomo monastery in Capri, the venue for the yacht owners' glamorous party. Leonardo Ferragamo, of the Italian fashion family, describes what makes this regatta special for him.

COMET YACHTS
While the other classes at this event field a range of international entries, the Comet yachts from Italy's Comar Shipyard are a strictly Italian affair. MainSail climbs aboard the yacht Ola to take part in one of their races.

AND FINALLY ...
A Round-up of Rolex Capri Sailing Week - all the best of the action, plus class results and reaction from the winners.

30 mins.

This month's MainSail is all about Olympic sailing, as the push to qualify for Beijing 2008 intensifies. Many top Olympians gathered on the Cote d'Azur for the 39th French Sailing Week. This is one of the last big events for the Olympic classes on the road to qualification and over a thousand competitors from 50 different countries took part - including MainSail presenter, Shirley Robertson.

Team Shirley Robertson
Shirley Robertson is a two-time Olympic sailing gold medallist. She wants to make it a hat-trick at Beijing, but to do that, she first needs to qualify, and she has serious competition. After Athens, she split from her two former crew members, who have now formed their own team. While they have been in full training mode for two years, Robertson has given birth to twins and began her own campaign later than expected. MainSail goes behind the scenes of her Olympic campaign, as she strives to make it to the world's greatest sporting event.

39th French Sailing week
The light conditions on the Cote d'Azur should provide valuable experience for the sailing venue in China, Qingdao. Mainsail speaks to the General Manager for French Sailing Week, Bernard Bonneau about the importance of this event for all the sailors.

Velux Five Oceans
A round-up of the solo round the world race, just won by Swiss sailor Bernard Stamm, who led all the way from the start in Bilbao. Despite the lack of competition, the race threw up great drama, including a mid-sea rescue and the successful finish of Robin Knox Johnston who came third at the age of 68, almost forty years after becoming the first man ever to sail non-stop around the world. His daily e-mails from his boat Saga Insurance harked back to a bygone era of sailing, as he complained about his new-fangled equipment and dwelt on the joys of his whisky and claret.

Hagara and Steinacher
Like Shirley Robertson, Austria's Roman Hagara and Hans-Peter Steinacher are double Olympic gold medalists from the Sydney and Athens Games in the Tornado Class. MainSail interviews Hagara and Steinacher and their long-standing coach Georg Fundak who is also an experienced Olympian.

30 mins.

It's sailing's biggest event - like Formula One and the World Cup combined, the America's Cup has all the glamour, money and rivalry to compare with any other sporting event in the world. And this could be the biggest and best ever. For the first time since its inception in 1851 it's being held in Europe, with all the ensuing advantages of television audience reach and sponsorship money. Double Olympic gold medallist,

Shirley Robertson presents Mainsail from an America's Cup yacht for a close-up view of what the event is all about.

BRIEF HISTORY

This is sport's oldest trophy - the original race was watched by Queen Victoria in 1851. She saw the British fleet beaten by the yacht, called America, from the New York Yacht Club. The trophy was then named the America's Cup and carried off to New York and stayed there for 132 years! Australia was the first nation to wrest it from the grip of the USA, then New Zealand. During the last Cup in 2003, the Swiss team Alinghi took it from the Kiwis.

CUP VETERAN

One of the world's best sailors and a veteran of six America's Cups, there's not much Paul Cayard doesn't know about this event. But what is his take on this latest edition of the event? Will it be the biggest and best ever? Will the changes and modernisation make for the best racing ever? What does he think of the venue of Valencia and the Spanish team for whom he is now working?

BEHIND THE SCENES

A winning team has to have good sailors, but more often than not, the team with the fastest boat wins. So, what is an America's Cup boat?

Shirley explains the features of an ACC boat, while Louise Moran takes a look at one of the main challengers, the American outfit, BMW Oracle Racing. They've used motor-racing technology and spent millions of dollars on research and development to try to give their yacht an edge over its rivals. With so much at stake, great secrecy surrounds each boat's individual characteristics and the hulls are hidden when out of the water, by skirts.

THE OFFICIAL PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE AMERICA'S CUP

But the America's Cup is not just about technology, like any sport it has its artistic side. Carlo Borlenghi is one of the finest marine photographers in the world and is the official photographer for the America's Cup, capturing these magnificent boats and their crews in action. Mainsail follows him out on the water to see him at work.

ON BOARD 'VICTORY CHALLENGE'

Shirley gives the rundown on an America's Cup crew - how does everyone work together on the boat to achieve maximum speed? Mainsail climbs aboard Sweden's yacht, Victory Challenge, for a close-up view of these speed-machines.

AND FINALLY...

After all the secrecy of teams hiding their technology secrets from each other, all is revealed in a grand unveiling day before racing begins. Everyone gets to see what lies beneath the skirts hiding the boat hulls. Then the challenger series begins to see who will face Alinghi in the America's Cup.

It's sailing's biggest event - like Formula One and the World Cup combined, the America's Cup has all  the glamour, money and rivalry to compare with any other sporting event in the world. And this could be the biggest and best ever. For the first time since its inception in 1851 it's being held in Europe, with all the ensuing advantages of television audience reach and sponsorship money. Double Olympic gold medallist, 

Shirley Robertson presents Mainsail from an America's Cup yacht for a close-up view of what the event is all about.

BRIEF HISTORY

This is sport's oldest trophy - the original race was watched by Queen Victoria in 1851. She saw the British fleet beaten by the yacht, called America, from the New York Yacht Club. The trophy was then named the America's Cup and carried off to New York and stayed there for 132 years! Australia was the first nation to wrest it from the grip of the USA, then New Zealand. During the last Cup in 2003, the Swiss team Alinghi took it from the Kiwis.

CUP VETERAN

One of the world's best sailors and a veteran of six America's Cups, there's not much Paul Cayard doesn't know about this event. But what is his take on this latest edition of the event? Will it be the biggest and best ever? Will the changes and modernisation make for the best racing ever? What does he think of the venue of Valencia and the Spanish team for whom he is now working?

BEHIND THE SCENES

A winning team has to have good sailors, but more often than not, the team with the fastest boat wins. So, what is an America's Cup boat?

Shirley explains the features of an ACC boat, while Louise Moran takes a look at  one of the main challengers, the American outfit, BMW Oracle Racing. They've used motor-racing technology and spent millions of dollars on research and development to try to give their yacht an edge over its rivals. With so much at stake, great secrecy surrounds each boat's individual characteristics and the hulls are hidden when out of the water, by skirts.

THE OFFICIAL PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE AMERICA'S CUP

But the America's Cup is not just about technology, like any sport it has its artistic side.  Carlo Borlenghi is one of the finest marine photographers in the world and is the official photographer for the America's Cup, capturing these magnificent boats and their crews in action.  Mainsail follows him out on the water to see him at work.

Shirley gives the rundown on an America's Cup crew - how does everyone work together on the boat to achieve maximum speed?  Mainsail climbs aboard Sweden's yacht, Victory Challenge, for a close-up view of these speed-machines.

AND FINALLY...

After all the secrecy of teams hiding their technology secrets from each other, all is revealed in a grand unveiling day before racing begins. Everyone gets to see what lies beneath the skirts hiding the boat hulls. Then the challenger series begins to see who will face Alinghi in the America's Cup.

This month MainSail visits Dubai, the Gulf state which is becoming a major destination for sailors. During the winter, it played host to America's Cup teams escaping the cold in Valencia and every year it stages the Maktoum Trophy, the Gulf's top fleet-racing series. MainSail presenter, Shirley Robertson, a double Olympic gold medallist, looks at the impressive plans for the future of sailing in Dubai.

MAKTOUM SAILING TROPHY

With prize money up to a million dollars, the Maktoum Sailing Trophy run by the Dubai International Marine Club is growing in stature. This year it has a new 10 day format in a deliberate move to attract more overseas competitors and usher in a new level of competitive fleet racing in the Gulf. Among others, Shirley Robertson meets former winner, Kristian Tzanov, a former moto-cross rider, who now switches between sailing and powerboat racing.

NEWS

Including the Velux Five Oceans Race

FIRST INTERNATIONAL MUMBAI BOAT SHOW

The commercial heart of India's burgeoning economy gets its first international boat show. With growth around 8 per cent, there's plenty of purchasing power in India and there are plans to open up Mumbai's waterfront and promote water-based activities in the city. CNN's Liz George reports from the show which includes a temporary marina in front of the world-famous monument, the Gateway to India.

NEWS

DHOW RACING IN DUBAI

China's manufacturing prowess looks set to expand into a new direction, as owners look to have their racing yachts built there. An Australian yacht builder, McConaughy, has set up shop in Dongguan, combining their know-how with local Chinese manufacturers. One of their first joint productions has been Team China's first America's Cup yacht. MainSail heads for their base with Rolex Global TP52 Champion, Eamon Conneely to check out his new TP52, Patches, which is being built there.

NEWS - Including action from Key West Race Week in Florida

Hong Kong billionaire Frank Pong, who is the head of China's America's Cup team, is passionate about sailing. He has several racing yachts but has been working on developing a special project for several years - Maiden Hong Kong. This yacht is built to break speed records and despite some technical problems, she is now nearing completion. MainSail takes a trip on board with the designer, Argentinian Juan Kouyoumdjian, who enjoyed great success last year, after designing the winning yacht in the Volvo Ocean Race.

NEWS

Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club - a profile and history of this great club, which is one of the oldest and most prestigious clubs in Hong Kong. It has a rich history which stretches back over 150 years of social and competitive sailing and rowing. The club today is a cosmopolitan organisation and its membership enjoys a comprehensive range of facilities both afloat and ashore.