As the only Chinese crewmember onboard Green Dragon, Guo Chuan felt like an outsider as the yacht left the Spanish port of Alicante in October to embark on one of the world's toughest races.

(Main pic): The Green Dragon at sea. (Insert): Media crew Guo Chuan. [China Daily]

Unlike the rest of the crew, made up of professional sailors, including former world champions and Olympic medalists, Guo was hired to write diaries and upload photos, often in extreme conditions, as the boat's media crew.

English not being his native language, it was hard to understand what people were saying, let alone fit in.

But that all changed as the grueling Volvo Ocean Race, which incorporates 10 ocean legs and covers 37,000 nautical miles over nine months, put its crew through the mixer and tested their ability to work together.

On Jan 31, Guo steered Green Dragon into his home port of Qingdao to a hero's welcome from his countrymen and much praise from the boat's British skipper.

For many of the onlookers, Guo's feat was seen as a harbinger of things to come, and a vindication of his hard work, as he stood at the helm of a yacht balanced at the pinnacle of the sport of sailing.

"It is amazing to be home," he said at the time. "When we arrived we received the warmest welcome from the people of Qingdao."

Guo had been at sea for 13 days since leaving Singapore to complete the fourth leg of the global race. For many of those 13 days, the boat, the personnel and much of their equipment had taken a ferocious beating from the elements.

For a man in his mid-forties, it demanded a lot of stomach. As the first Chinese to join the race in its three-decade history, he knew the full weight of his responsibility.

"The slogan for the Volvo Ocean Race is 'Life at the Extreme', which is also my deepest feeling so far," he told China Daily.

"I have experienced extreme conditions in every aspect, such as eating, sleeping and living in a very confined space. I also have to find the best position for shooting film, which is very difficult on a boat that is being constantly tossed about."

With the boat being built in China and funding coming from here and Ireland, Green Dragon is considered to be the first Chinese team to join the Volvo Ocean Race.

But that doesn't mean people were drinking green tea, setting off firecrackers or doing much else to make Guo feel as though he was right back home.

"Due to the fact that I'm coming from a different cultural background from the others, I feel like I have to try a lot harder," he said.

Being asked to steer the boat home as they neared Qingdao in Shandong Province was a sign of recognition, and admiration.

"I think that showed their respect for me. It was a kind of confirmation that I fit the bill," he said.

With the fleet setting sail for Rio de Janeiro, the mid-point of the race, on Valentine's Day (Saturday), Green Dragon is fourth overall in the rankings with 30 points. Ericsson 4 leads after four legs with 49 points and Telefonica Blue is second with 45, edging PUMA (41) into third.

Green Dragon might have fared better, but for three major technical problems experienced in the race so far.

"We need to get more reliable," said captain Ian Walker. "We are a smaller team so top three (overall) would be a good result."