Greeted by traditional drummers, Charlotte Evans MBE arrived in Vietnam on Wednesday after sailing 7,000 miles from Australia.

Medway’s Paralympic gold medallist had been at sea for nearly five weeks as part of the Great Britain crew for the Clipper Round the World Yacht Race.

She tweeted shortly after midnight yesterday to say: “Thanks for all the lovely messages. Feels so good to be on land, however, I am having the best time and loving every second.”

The team came third having fought for second place most of the leg from Whitsunday Islands, Australia, to Da Nang, Vietnam.

Charlotte, 24, from Chatham, had never sailed before and overcame a fear of water to complete all four levels of sailing qualifications.

She has been spending her time on land fixing sails but hopes to be able to go and explore the area before heading back out to sea for the rest of her journey.

Also on the team are Olympic badminton silver medallist, Nathan Robertson, and London 2012 rowing finalist, Bill Lucas.

The Clipper race was established in 1996 by Sir Robin Knox-Johnston with the aim of enabling anyone, regardless of previous experience, to “embrace the thrill of ocean racing”.

Skier Charlotte was a sighted guide for her partner, Kelly Gallagher from Northern Ireland, when then won gold in the women’s Super-G at the 2014 Winter Paralympics in Sochi.