For the World Match Racing Tour to live up to its potential, it needs to redistribute its events to markets which are important for stakeholders. The announcement of  the ‘Qingdao Match Cup’ is a great addition to the Tour. The model shows that sailing can be ‘professional’ and develop participation as a consequence.

Vice Mayor of Qingdao Municipal Government, Wang Xiulin, who is also the President of the Qingdao Yachting Association and Peter Gilmour, President of the WMRT have signed a five year agreement through to 2014, which gives the event enough security to allow for investment in infrastructure and consistency of delivery.

The size and relative immaturity of the sailing market in China makes the Qingdao Match Cup the perfect platform to sell more boats. While manufacturers have traditionally kept racing and cruising separate, Beneteau will provide 10 First 40 yachts as the weapon of choice for the World Match Racing Tour competitors.

Just as golf  and tennis can support amateurs and professionals, the World Match Racing Tour is sending a message to competitors that there may be a living to be made from being one of the best match racers in the world. The Qingdao Match Cup will have offer a total prize pool of USD$500,000.

Unlike some past Olympic sailing venues, Qingdao has used the infrastructure provided by the games to become the foremost location for sailing in China. Qingdao, THE SAILING CITY has already successfully hosted stopovers for the 2008-2009 Volvo Ocean Race and the 2009-2010 Clipper Round the World Yacht Race.

During a speech at the official signing ceremony, Wang Xiulin, Vice Mayor of the Qingdao Municipal Government, said to host the World Match Racing Tour is an important step for Qingdao.

“The WMRT is a top class global series amongst international sailing events. It is important to us to have a world class event here, especially for those who are now fond of sailing. Once the Qingdao Match Cup is established, more people will get an opportunity to learn about match racing”.

China is a vast population for the WMRT to penetrate and engage with. There are 1.3 billion people within the nation where sailing is growing in popularity. In the City of Qingdao alone, there are 8 million residents, about 2 million of these locals regularly take part in sports. Over the past few years in excess of 10,000 people have accepted the opportunity of sail training in Qingdao, which has led to 5,000 local residents taking part in regular sailing leisure pursuits.

The Vice Mayor added,

“With the World Match Racing Tour coming to Qingdao this year, Qingdao will take the lead in hosting important international regattas in China”.

The WMRT President, Peter Gilmour added

“The ability of the City of Qingdao to organise a stage of the WMRT in such a short amount of time (four month period) was something we analysed carefully. As both a competitor and organiser I am delighted to see that the penultimate stage of the 2010 Tour will be simply outstanding as the City Of Qingdao is now ready for the Tour.”

More World Match Racing Tour News…

Sanya, the southernmost city on the golden coast of Hainan Province, China, has won the bid to host the Volvo Ocean Race 2011-12. Building on the success of the Qingdao stopover during the 2008-09 event, the resort city of Sanya will be the finish of leg three, which starts from Abu Dhabi.

As the 2011-12 route takes shape, the port of Sanya is now confirmed as the only stopover in Asia. Other ports on the course include the start in Alicante, where the Volvo Ocean Race now has its base, stopovers in Cape Town, Abu Dhabi, Lisbon, Lorient and the finish in Galway. The entire route for this classic round the world race will be revealed by the end of March, when details on scoring, leg lengths and other details will be confirmed.

Speaking of the selection of Sanya as Asia’s only port of call, Mr Liu Gang, Deputy Director of the China Water Sports Administration Centre said, “The wonderful memories from the last edition of the race when it visited Qingdao remain fresh in our minds and I would like to congratulate Sanya for being chosen as the new stopover”.

The Vice Mayor of Sanya, Li Baiqing, echoed Mr Liu Gang’s comments and said, “Sanya is honoured to be the only stopover in Asia for the next race. The city will relish the chance to show its charm to the Volvo Ocean Race visitors from around the world”. He also confirmed that Hainan would showcase its achievements and development potential and try to capture the world’s attention during the event.

“The race was held very successfully in Qingdao and has inspired a passion among many Chinese people. It is with great pleasure that we are able to confirm that China will once again be part of the route for 2011-12 and it will be an honour to take the event to Sanya,” commented Volvo Ocean Race CEO, Knut Frostad.

Sanya on the southern tip of Hainan, the only tropical island province in China, features golden sandy beaches and enjoys a good year-round climate. The Sanya Municipal Government will use the Volvo Ocean Race as part of its plans to develop the city into a top international tourism destination. It already has an excellent transport system, which will be integral to the building of a new high-level marina.

The Ceremony at China International Boat Show was attended by Mr. Li Quanhai, Vice President of the Chinese Yachting Association, David Zhong, CEO of CCIR Management Company, Francois Rodrigues, General Manager of Beneteau China, and Mike Simpson, Managing Director of Simpson Marine, and friends from sailing community and media.

David Zhong, CEO of CCIR Management Company:

“We are actually upbeat about the prospect of sailing industry in China despite the current economic situation. We take pride in what we have achieved in the past two years and feel greater responsibility of uncompromised efforts to promote sailing in China”

‘Day of Discovery’ is the latest manifestation of China Cup, Beneteau and Simpson Marine’s commitment to promoting sailing as the three are deepening and strengthening their cooperation. The first two events are scheduled in August and November this year to share the fun of sailing with more people. Each time, the organizers will invite guests from all over the country for sailing on 10 Beneteau First 40.7 yachts in Shenzhen.

At the same time, China Cup is planning a Sailing Training Centre in cooperation with Chinese Yachting Association. This training program, comprised of theory and practice, will be conducted by experienced instructors in the Longcheer Yacht Club, aiming to provide sailing enthusiasts with professional training service. We warmly welcome friends from all over the country for the sailing training.

The purpose is to make the seemingly expensive sport accessible to more people in China. Over the past two years, China Cup hosted a series of sailing summer camps for children and sailing days for people in Shenzhen; it also organized corporate regattas for team building and hospitality; in addition, a fund-raising auction has become a regular part of each year’s CCIR to help build sailing schools for youngsters in China. These campaigns by China Cup, combined with the regatta, have dramatically raised media visibility of sailing in China.

With the confidence and persistent efforts by China Cup, its partners and government, 2009 might see a clearer picture of growing enthusiasm of sailing in China and a flourishing Chinese yachting industry.

The DARK BLUE BOOK can now be pre-ordered. The directory listing influential people and companies in the business of yacht racing will be published in Mid-May.

Destined to become ‘the bible’ for those who work in or are interested in working in the sport of professional sailinig, the first edition of the book has received widespread support from dealmakers in the industry around the world.

David Fuller, CEO of Pilote Media, the publishers of the resource said:

“It’s great to see this project coming to life. The industry is relatively unorganised compared to other sports, there are a lot of different choices for competitors and sponsors. Unlike most professional sports that have a single governing body or well established leagues and calendars, yacht racing needs to present a more cohesive offer if it is to get its fair share of sponsorship dollars and media coverage. We hope the DARK BLUE BOOK will go some way to helping this.”

The who’s who of yacht racing can be downloaded at http://www.darkbluebook.com/buy-the-book/

The Volvo Ocean Race has issued a mid-race report, showing results to date for the 2008-09 event. The mid-term report card shows a significant increase in the areas of spectator numbers, media exposure and return on investment.

While those in the UK complain about the ‘good old days’, new markets are embracing the sport. Volvo deserves huge credit for opening markets like India and China. Extending the footprint of the race into new territories, particularly Asia, has taken the appeal and fascination of the race to unprecedented levels.

Here then are the numbers for ‘traditional media’.

• Visitors to the race villages so far – 2,350,392 (156% increase)
• Footfall for stopover in China – 811,677
• Peak day crowd for India – 107,287
• Cumulative TV audience – 547,251,706
• Chinese TV Audience – 268,968,000
• News Outlets – 319 in 200 countries
• Media Accreditations 1,556 (30% increase)
• Press cuttings – 6624 in 14 monitored territories
• Picture desks taking imagery from the race – 5,000
• Syndicated media value US$65 Million

Here are the numbers for multimedia.

In multimedia terms, the race delivers an unparalleled experience – from multilingual websites to a dedicated broadband TV channel, mobile capability and a phenomenally successful online sailing game.

• Official Website Visitors – 2.41 million visitors (39% increase)
• Official Website Visits – 13.95 million (51% increase)
• VolvoOceanRace.tv unique visitors – 738,000
• Videos viewed on VolvoOceanRace.tv – 2,000,000
• Average viewing time per visitor – 49 Minutes
• Videos posted on Youtube – 300
• Views on Youtube – 655,821
• Mobile channel – 180% increase on 2005-2006

And let’s not forget the Volvo Ocean Race online game. Don’t tell me that sailing is complicated!

• Volvo Ocean Race Game players – 180,000
• Number of countries that online game players come from – 180 countries.

So there is an audience for sailing out there.

The report also discusses what sponsors and teams are getting out of the race. While there are calls for costs to be reduced, those that are activating their sponsorships well are happy with their return on investment. More on that tomorrow.

Berg Propulsion joins Shandong Lingong, Weichai Power and Triangle Group as well as Discoverireland.com as sponsors.

At today’s announcement in Qingdao, Berg Propulsion CEO Aloysius Hendricks stated,

“We are proud to announce our partnership with the Green Dragon, an unique Chinese and Irish collaboration representing for us a collaboration between Europe and Asia. At Berg Propulsion, we feel a strong connection to Green Dragon as we also have European roots combined with a strong Asian influence. This influence is particularly evident in China where we have seen our business grow steadily.”

For Berg Propulsion the sponsorship of this campaign was a natural fit, Green Dragon reflects Berg Propulsion’s values: a global perspective and reach, an emphasis on quality and reliability and a desire for excellence.

Berg Propulsion is no stranger to doing business in China, it has an extensive sales, marketing and service office located in Shanghai. Berg Propulsion has enjoyed a large volume of sales in China and a number of its key Asian customers are based here.

Berg propulsion Chairman Hakan Svensson said:

“Berg Propulsion is a global organization and we have real synergies with the Green Dragon team. We will join our customers and partners at seven of the remaining stopovers and we look forward to hosting the Dragon at our home port of Marstand in June,”

Green Dragon CEO Jamie Boag commented:

“We are very excited to join forces with Berg Propulsion. The next five months are going to be challenging both on and off the water, we feel a genuine connection to the team at Berg Propulsion and we are looking forward to continuing this journey together”.

Qingdao was first brought to the attention of the world’s media as a sailing city when it hosted a stopover and sponsored an entry in the Clipper 05-06 Round the World Yacht Race. Since then the city has cemented its profile as a sailing capital with a second Clipper Race entry and stopover in 2008 and as the official sailing centre for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games.

Over the past week Qingdao has been playing host to its third round the world yacht race with the arrival of the Volvo Open 70s competing in this year’s Volvo Ocean Race. Each team has arrived to a spectacular welcome ceremony which culminated with the arrival of the Chinese/Irish entry over the weekend.

The Green Dragon crew were welcomed as heroes especially local crew member Guo Chuan who is the only Chinese crew member competing in this year’s Volvo Race. The occasion was not the first time Guo Chuan has received such a welcome, his first ocean racing experience was sailing to his homeport from Singapore onboard Qingdao in the Clipper 05-06 Round the World Yacht Race.

Guo Chuan says:

“I appreciate that I am lucky in that I am one of very few Chinese to have this opportunity. As a nation we have been absent from the sailing world but this is now changing. We need more ways our people can get experience and pass it on to others and especially the young. We now have some good dinghy sailors who did well in the Olympics and Qingdao’s continuing involvement with the Clipper Race will also be a help.”

This time next year the Clipper 09-10 fleet will be preparing to leave Marina at Keppel Bay in Singapore for the punishing upwind race to China’s Qingdao. This will be the third time the non-professionals have tackled the route that is now being billed by the pros as one of the most difficult in the history of the Volvo Ocean Race.

The Chinese entry Qingdao has yet to win into her homeport and Chinese crew members who dare to take part in Clipper 09-10 could help make it third time lucky.

Representatives from the Clipper Race Team will be in Qingdao from 11 to 15 February and interviews have already been scheduled with potential Chinese crew including a 39-year-old IT specialist from Qingdao. No previous sailing experience is required to get onboard for Clipper 09-10 as full comprehensive training is provided.

www.clipperroundtheworld.com

The brusied fleet will be welcomed by the first ever Chinese Volvo Ocean Race Village, officially opened on Wednesday afternoon with a series of drumming and dance performances, a few short speeches, and a climax punctuated by a very loud set of fireworks strung up along a mock-up of the ‘Great Wall’.

In his speech, race CEO Knut Frostad thanked the local organising committee for their preparations, and paid tribute to the fleet at sea, still battling the elements on their way to Qingdao.

“I want to complement all of the sailors, for the skill and seamanship they have shown in very difficult conditions,” he said. “We often say that ‘to finish first, first you have to finish’ and on this leg, from Singapore to Qingdao that is more true than ever before.”

The wording of the statement below makes the maths seem a little strange, (you need to work with 23 as the starting number, not 21).

Aside from the Defender, Alinghi and the Challenger of Record, Desafío Español, a total of 21 teams presented a Notice of Entry and 17 were accepted. Three of the entered teams are pending minor details towards their official registration and have been granted an extension until January 15. Three other teams were denied entry as no further documentation beyond the Notice of Entry was received by the December 15 entry deadline. Carbon Challenge has withdrawn.

Many of the teams have been working together over the past few months at regular Competitor Meetings to amend the 33rd America’s Cup Protocol and to design the new class rule; this process is ongoing and will continue into the New Year with further meetings planned and a publication date for the class rule scheduled for the end of January.

Brad Butterworth, Alinghi team skipper, comments on a very exciting fleet:

“Having 19 teams from 12 countries entered for the 33rd America’s Cup is a clear expression of the huge worldwide interest in the competition. It’s fantastic to see such an international fleet with newcomers such as Russia. It is also significant that all but one of the teams from the previous edition have entered again. We will continue to work together with these challengers to make the 33rd America’s Cup a success, regardless of BMW Oracle’s decision to pursue their legal strategy to eliminate all challengers and force their way into an America’s Cup Match, something they have never achieved on the water.”

So who are the 19 teams? The List for the 33rd America’s Cup teams (in order of entry):

• Alinghi, Société Nautique de Genève (SUI) – Defender 
• Desafío Español, Club Náutico Español de Vela (ESP) – Challenger of Record 
• Shosholoza, Royal Cape Yacht Club (RSA) 
• TeamOrigin, Royal Thames Yacht Club (GBR) 
• Team New Zealand, Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron (NZL) 
• DCYC, Deutscher Challenger Yacht Club (GER) 
• Green Comm Challenge, Circolo di Vela Gargano (ITA) 
• Ayre Challenge, Real Club Náutico de Dénia (ESP) 
• Victory Challenge, Gamla Stans Yacht Skallskap (SWE) 
• Argo Challenge, Club Nautico Gaeta (ITA) 
• Mascalzone Latino, Reale Yacht Club Canottieri Savoia (ITA) 
• Team French Spirit, Yacht Club de St Tropez (FRA) 
• Luna Rossa, Yacht Club Punta Ala (ITA) 
• Russia Team – Fiona, Yacht Club Seven Feet (RUS) 
• Joe Fly, Società Canottieri Lecco (ITA) 
• K-Challenge, Cercle de la Voile de Paris (FRA) 
• Greek Challenge, N.O.K. Poseidon – Nautical Club of Kalamata (GRC) 
• Dabliu Sail Project (ITA) 
• China Team, Qingdao International Yacht Club (CHN)

The IOC’s Olympic Golden Rings ceremony recognises the contribution made by the world of television to the success of the Olympic Games. Sailing won the gold award for The Best Sports Coverage by the Host Broadcasting Organisation, the Beijing Olympic Broadcasting (BOB).

Gary Milkis, Producer of BOB’s sailing coverage, said,

‘This award goes to an exceptional crew made up of professionals from around the world. We had excellent cooperation from ISAF who allowed us great access and an always open line of communication. Also, a first class venue and some great weather that made for exceptional images.’

A number of innovations, both to the format of the competition and from a technical perspective, meant TV audiences had better view of the sport than ever before.

ISAF President Göran Petersson said,

‘The new Medal Race format proved a key element in the success of sailing’s TV coverage at the Beijing Olympic Games. This latest award is further evidence that ISAF’s decision three years has helped take the sport forwards.’

At Beijing 2008, sailing was broadcast in high definition for the first time, with live broadcasts of all 11 of the decisive Medal Races beamed around the world. Along with Producer, Milkis, Christopher Lincoln was Director of BOB’s Sailing Coverage and Henry Mok was Coordinating Producer.

Jerome Pels, Secretary General of the International Sailing Federation (ISAF), said,

‘This is fantastic news for the sport and great reward for all the efforts of the BOB team in Qingdao. I’d also like to thank the Sailing Sub-Committee of BOCOG, who worked in cooperation with ISAF to realize the potential we know sailing has as a televised sport. And of course, great thanks to the IOC, who have continued to support ISAF and sailing by investing in the personnel and the technology to bring the sport to life.’

Pels said the Olympic Golden Rings was the latest in a series of positive signs for the sport’s TV performance at Beijing 2008. ‘We are delighted that sailing is recognized for these awards. Just as important though is the evidence we are beginning to see of the positive growth in TV audiences.

The TNSSport report of Olympic TV performance in the UK and China commissioned by ASOIF, placed sailing as third sport in terms of total Olympic TV audience in the UK and fourth in terms of top sports programme.

The report also indicates a TV audience in China of over 10 million people for the Windsurfer Medal Races – a fantastic improvement on figures we’ve seen from past Games.’