SHE'S battled cancer and now former student of St John's School in Marlborough, Mischka Richards, has braved the water to compete in one of world's biggest yacht races.

The teenager, formerly of Great Bedwyn and now living near Andover, was one of 22 youngsters who are part of the Ellen MacArthur Cancer Trust to take part in the competition called Round the Island Race in the Isle of Wight.

Every year the event organised by the Island Sailing Club attracts around 16,000 sailors and more than 1,700 boats. Mischka joined four others on the yacht Omerta to sail the 50 nautical mile route, which took them around ten hours.

"I love being on the Isle of Wight because it is so beautiful," the 18-year-old said. "The atmosphere of everyone being out there and enjoying themselves was great, it's not just about the winning."

When she was 14 she received the devastating diagnosis that she had a rare form of bone cancer called Osteosarcoma. Mischka finished cancer treatment last July at the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford and has been given the all clear.

However, the illness caused her to lose her confidence and the hospital referred her to the Ellen MacArthur Cancer Trust to help restore it.

The national organisation, founded in 2003 by the international sailor, gives young people aged eight to 24, who are recovering from cancer, the chance to experience the thrill of sailing. Every year they enter a number of yachts and young people into the Round the Island Race competition.

It is the second boat trip the Newbury College student has been on with the trust. She was planning to take part in one last year but her condition relapsed so couldn't but was eager to take part in this year's yacht challenge.

Mischka added: "I decided to come back because it's great to be here amongst friends that will stick with you. They become friends for life because we all have so much in common and if you are in pain they understand what you are going through. You can be yourself here.

"It's really encouraging and helped me to talk to people. I really lost my confidence when I got ill and I was really nervous around people but this has really helped because they are in the same situation and at the end of the trip there were a couple of tears because we didn't want to go."