Volvo Ocean Race organisers have been forced to come up with a new plan to get the competing boats and teams in and out of Abu Dhabi without exposing them to the threat of piracy.

After monitoring the increasing security concerns related to piracy and taking advice from marine safety experts Dryad Maritime Intelligence, a new logistical plan has been developed.

The planned race would have seen competing teams sail through an East African corridor in the Indian Ocean on the second leg from Cape Town to Abu Dhabi and again in the third leg from Abu Dhabi to Sanya in China.

Under the new plan, the boats will race from Cape Town to an undisclosed ‘safe haven’ port, be transported closer to Abu Dhabi by a specialised yacht transport ship and then complete the leg from there. The process will be reversed for the third leg before the race continues on to Sanya, the fourth of 10 host ports in a race that will not finish until July 2012.

Volvo Ocean Race Chief Executive Knut Frostad said:

“This has been an incredibly difficult decision. We have consulted leading naval and commercial intelligence experts and their advice could not have been clearer: ‘Do not risk it.’ The solution we have found means our boats will still be racing into Abu Dhabi and competing in the in-port race there.

“Abu Dhabi is a very important part of our plans, a real highlight being the race’s first-ever stopover in the Middle East, and we will now have a really exciting sprint finish to the emirate over the New Year period as well.”

The route was always going to have an element of risk, but figures supplied by Dryad suggest that the piracy risk is increasing. It says piracy is a well-organised and highly lucrative business and it has expanded into a vast area off the coast of Somalia. In 2010 a record 1,181 seafarers were kidnapped by pirates.

Frostad emphasised that the race would still be a round-the-world challenge.

“We continue to be the only continuous sporting event to visit five continents over nine months of gruelling sailing.”

Abu Dhabi is a race partner as well as host city for the Volvo Ocean Race. The emirate has invested heavily in the infrastructure to host the event, a Volvo 70 and activation of their involvement at events like Cowes Week.

More Volvo Ocean Race News

A recent edition of the Financial Times’ ‘How to Spend it’ magazine which focused on yachts and boating carried 14 advertisements for watches including the inside front cover double spread, back cover and inside back cover. So there is no doubt that marketing folk think that there is a strong link between the demographic who have big boats and those who buy nice timepieces.

Rolex, Omega, Panerai and Corum are just some of the brands that use sponsorship of sailing to promote themselves.

While the supplement was more about the kind of yachts that appeal to Russian billionaires and Rappers, sailing has long been used to promote watches. And now, IWC Schaffhausen, the International Watch Company, has announced a sponsorship deal with Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority (ADTA) to become the first major sponsor of Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing.

According to the press release, this sailing sponsorship deal is a first for the Swiss brand – the first time IWC has backed a top-tier global sports team. The nature of the deal is to “…foster enhanced promotional and awareness initiatives around the team’s pursuit of top honours.” The watch company will also get some real-estate on the Volvo Open 70.

His Excellency Mubarak Al Muhairi, Director General, ADTA – Team Principal for Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing said:

“We share a pioneering spirit based on the fundamentals of tradition. This is a coming together of two organisations that have a great deal in common, including the pursuit of perfection, strong community responsibility, unwavering commitment to sustainable business practices and the environment, and a desire to excel beyond expectation. Together we will chart a course of mutual and steadfast success.”

Georges Kern, CEO, IWC Schaffhausen said:

“For over 140 years, IWC has epitomised values such as engineering excellence, perfection, pioneering spirit, quality and passion. We are proud to put these attributes to the test as the Official Timekeeper for the forthcoming Volvo Ocean Race and to share them with Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing team.”

IWC Schaffhausen is also the Official Timekeeper of the Volvo Ocean Race. The deal, announced in January means that IWC Schaffhausen will present the 24-hour record prize per race leg, which will be awarded during the prize-giving ceremony at each Host Port. They will also award a special prize for the fastest team over 24-hours in the Volvo Ocean Race 2011-12. This prize will be presented at the end of the race in Galway, July 2012. The fastest crewmembers will all be awarded an exclusive IWC timepiece.

More Volvo Ocean Race News

Many yacht racing promoters count tourism and travel organisations amongst their biggest supporters. Cities bid to host events and in return get to raise awareness about a destination and perhaps also a bump in tourism numbers. As the start of the Volvo Ocean Race approaches, some host ports are doing a better job than others of promoting their destination’s Volvo Ocean Race travel packages.

Leading the race is Abu Dhabi. This is perhaps no surprise, given that the tie-up between the team and the venue is so close. The official Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing website features a prominent ‘Plan your trip’ link, though the ‘last mile’ to booking tickets is still left to the consumer to work out via the Visit Abu Dhabi website. This may change as the Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority (ADTA) is working with international tour operators, hotels, airlines and other stakeholders to develop compelling New Year-Volvo Ocean Race packages to the emirate.

Other stopovers have little or no information for visitors looking to travel to a Volvo Ocean Race port. There is a holding page at www.galwayvolvooceanrace.com and a splash page at www.volvooceanracemiami.org and in other host-ports like Sanya and Capetown, third party travel operators rank at the top of Google for searches like “Volvo Ocean Race travel packages.”

The Volvo Ocean Race does allow cities to build marine infrastructure with long-term benefits. Boston’s Fan Pier which hosted a stopover for the last edition will host the Extreme Sailing Series over the 4th of July Weekend and Abu Dhabi’s plans to build a 55,000m² ‘Destination Village’ will be of long term benefit as a sailing center to locals and visitors alike.

The village  is being built on the Abu Dhabi Corniche breakwater, adjacent to the Heritage Village and overlooking Abu Dhabi’s city skyline.

The Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority (ADTA) has appointed Tourism Development & Investment Company (TDIC) to manage development of the site.

TDIC will dredge this section of the Corniche lagoon to allow entry of the 4.5 metre keeled state-of-the-art race yachts and build permanent yacht pontoons. Infrastructure work is due for completion this September. Temporary structure build will run until December when the final phase of installing more than 130 Volvo Ocean Race team gear, hospitality and equipment containers will take place.

His Excellency Mubarak Al Muhairi, Director General, ADTA and Managing Director, TDIC said:

“This will ensure that our hosting leaves a lasting legacy for the emirate and will also boost our long-term ambitions to be recognised as a compelling winter sailing and watersports destination. It will be the place to be at the beginning of 2012 and will be marked by a sensational New Year’s Eve celebration It will also allow visitors to connect with our rich maritime heritage as well as the history of the Volvo Ocean Race and to discover more about sailing as a healthy pastime and sport.”

ADTA is planning an entertainment programme for the two-week stop-over including concerts, a welcoming ceremony for the first arriving yacht, in-port races, pro-am races, city receptions and top-class evening events taking place throughout the city.

The authority is progressing a full-scale stopover sailing programme in conjunction with local stakeholders, which will draw on the near 40 years experience of the Volvo Ocean Race. It will boast entry-level sailing academies for those looking to attempt their first tack and jibe all the way through to traditional dhow racing demonstrations.

It’s not just about tourists though. There is an opportunity to grow the sport in the region. Al Muhairi says:

“This, we hope, will be the start of a renaissance in the uptake of sailing locally. The sea is in our blood and we want to encourage residents, nationals and expatriates alike, to get out onto the water.”

ADTA is working closely with a number of governmental and commercial bodies to successfully stage the Middle East’s first hosting of the Volvo Ocean Race, including Abu Dhabi Sailing & Yacht Club, the Official Host Yacht Club and key partner in the roll-out of the stopover and the junior sailing initiatives; and the Abu Dhabi International Marine Sports Club, the Technical Headquarters, which will be home to the team areas, media center, photographer centre and the international television broadcast compound.

More Volvo Ocean Race News

In the last edition of the Volvo Ocean Race, there were some shaking of heads and grumbles from the establishment when organisers put stops in India and China. The traditional blast around the southern ocean, miles from sunshine or spectators was replaced by a bold attempt to bring offshore racing to new markets. It’s the kind of balancing act that all professionally based sports have to deal with – weighing up commercial interests with the sporting element.

In the next edition of the race, the teams will sail up the east coast of Africa as they did in the last, but when they get to the top they will turn right, into the gulf and stop in Abu Dhabi. No doubt there are some who are shaking their heads and grumbling at the decision, which is a commercial one, but if early media and promotion is anything to go by, the Abu Dhabi stop will be a huge thing for sailing.

With over a year to go, there is little or no noise from the other 7 stops, relative to the information that is coming out of the Emirates. Perhaps yacht racing visiting Cape Town or Auckland is not so new and therefore not so newsworthy, but such complacency plays into the hands of new, hungry venues that are looking to grow the sport. The Volvo Ocean Race is not just about the stopover, it is about a new nation in the race.

This week, UAE national, Adil Khalid was announced as a crew member of Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority (ADTA)-backed Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing team for the 2011/12 Volvo Ocean Race, making him the first Emirati sailor to compete in the race.

Adil Khalid, who represented the UAE in both the Beijing Olympics in 2008 and the Asian Games in November 2010, beat more than 120 Emirati hopefuls to earn his spot in the 11-strong sporting crew, which includes Olympic medal winners, America’s Cup victors, Volvo Ocean Race champions and Guinness World Record holders.

His Highness Sheikh Sultan bin Tahnoon Al Nahyan, Chairman, ADTA and Team Principal of Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing said:

“The search for the UAE national to represent us in this challenge has been extensive, in-depth and highly competitive. This exhaustive process was necessary because the race demands and standards are exceptionally high, as are our own aspirations. We have been impressed by many of the applicants whose enthusiasm has been a credit to the nation. The final selection went down to the wire and at the end of the day Adil Khalid was the unanimous choice and we congratulate him on this achievement. All three finalists were worthy contenders but Adil Khalid had the edge in terms of sailing experience as well as his developmental potential.”

Adil will also be tasked with leading the procession of awe-inspiring Volvo Open 70 racing yachts into the emirate to a ‘homecoming’ unlike any other.

Mubarak Al Muhairi says:

“We are finalising site negotiations for a prime waterfront location in Abu Dhabi city that will serve as the host marina and race village for the Abu Dhabi leg of the 2011/2012 Volvo Ocean Race. We expect to break ground on the race village next month and progressively thereafter provide more details on its layout and design, visitor activities and community engagement programmes. The race boats will arrive here from Cape Town on New Year’s Eve giving us a unique opportunity to deliver a spectacular celebratory programme in true Arabian hospitality style for one and all.”

Over the last few years, Abu Dhabi has flexed its credentials as a major sporting hub, with the successful staging of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, the European Tour-backed Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship and the Red Bull Air Race. Just as the development of new sporting facilities like the Grand Prix track put traditional venues (like the UK’s Silverstone) to shame, so too the investment into the Volvo Ocean Race stopover should give other host cities, not just of the Volvo Ocean Race, but other grand prix sailing events, something to think about.

More Volvo Ocean Race news….

More Middle East Sailing News…

Ian Walker, Skipper of Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing talks about the progress of Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing’s campaign for the next Volvo Ocean Race.

A training base has been established at Abu Dhabi Marine Sports Club and construction of the boat is under way.

The Emirati crew selection process is drawing to a close. Over 50 application have been received so far. 12 potential crew will be selected for further sailing and physical tests to find the person who will contribute most to the team.

Business News updates for the Volvo Ocean Race

After announcing that the team of Ian Walker and Jamie Boag would run the Abu Dhabi Ocean Race Team for the next edition of the Volvo Ocean Race, the team has officially appointed US-based Farr Yacht Design, to design its Volvo Open 70 for Race. Jason Carrington (UK) has also been hired as the team’s Technical Manager.

His Excellency Mubarak Al Muhairi, Director General, Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority (ADTA) said:

“Farr Yacht Design was selected because of its ability to tailor to our specific requirements and for its strong commitment to research and design which has been ongoing since the conclusion of the Volvo Ocean Race 2008-09. We anticipate being able to announce the appointment of the yacht builder early next month after finalising the selection of six tender qualifiers from throughout the Middle East, Europe and the Far East.”

Jason Carrington, a professional offshore sailor Will become the team’s technical manager. Over the last two decades, Jason has built five Volvo Ocean Race yachts and project-managed three campaigns.

Carrington has also competed in more than 30 top-level international regattas, but his first round the world experience was on Fortuna in the 1993-94 Whitbread (formerly the Volvo Ocean Race). After this taste of ocean racing, he continued his sailing career joining Silk Cut for the 1997-98 Whitbread, ASSA ABLOY in the Volvo Ocean Race 2001-02 and finally sailed with Ericsson Racing Team in the 2005-06 Volvo Ocean Race.

ADTA and Walker are also currently in the final stages of appointing the team’s other crewmembers, and are committed to including a UAE national on the sailing team and another two on the shore team. An open selection process will begin next month. The building of the yacht will start in late September.

More Volvo Ocean Race Business News…

While we were down in Cowes, there were some big sailing business stories announced. The Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority (ADTA) has announced ‘officially’  that two-time British Olympic medallist and past Volvo Ocean Race skipper, Ian Walker, will take the helm for the emirate’s debut in the next edition of the race. Walker’s business partner Jamie Boag will also be involved in the project which has a reported budget of $25 Million.

The Abu Dhabi project is part of a growing interest in the top level of yacht racing from the region, with Oman, Dubai and Bahrain all investing in the sport.

Walker will also be design consultant on the specially-designed Volvo Open 70 which may be designed by top US-based designer  Bruce Farr. Australian yacht builders McConaghy, who established a facility in China when building Green Dragon would do the same in Abu Dhabi.

ADTA, which was behind the emirate’s successful bid to become a 2011-12 Volvo Ocean Race home port, considers Walker’s appointment to be a major coup for Abu Dhabi’s first foray into the race.

Ahmed Hussein, Deputy Director General, ADTA said

“Ian is the lynchpin in the dream team we are determined to secure. His high profile sends a signal of the seriousness of our ambitions in a sport which will help us build international awareness of our long maritime pedigree and exceptional coastline and surrounding waters.”

Knut Frostad, CEO of the Volvo Ocean Race is very pleased to have Ian Walker back in the race.

“We believe he will be an excellent skipper and leader for Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing,” he said. “The host city is an excellent venue for sailing and hopefully this project will encourage and ignite passion for sailing within the region.”

Walker believes that Abu Dhabi’s participation in the Volvo Ocean Race is a huge step forward for sailing, with the entire emirate eager to embrace the race and support its team.

“This will certainly encourage other sailing events and championships to come to this part of the world,” he said, “and is already inspiring the local population to get fully behind sailing. This is going to be a fantastic journey.”

Like many of the other tourism backed programs in the region, the project is about legacy and local development of talent. ADTA and UK-based Walker are also in the final stages of appointing the team’s other crew members, with plans to include a UAE national in the Sporting Team and another two on the Shore Team. Walker thinks it is crucial to have the right mix of youth and experience and, following his experience with the Green Dragon campaign and the inclusion of Chinese crewman Guo Chuan, he supports the idea of an internationally-represented crew.

“Obviously you need the right mix of skills such as helming, trimming, bowmen, sailmaking, rigging and engineering, yet it is just as important to select people who will work well as a team. We have a unique opportunity to do something special with Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing. The Volvo Ocean Race is mentally and physically exhausting. The whole project is quite daunting but it is easier to comprehend having done the race before. I have huge respect for the yachts and the race and we will be as prepared as we possibly can be.”

More Middle East Yacht Racing News…

Another one of yacht racing’s worst kept secrets was officially announced yesterday. The battle for the hearts, minds and soles of yacht racing fans will be contested by Camper, the Spanish-based international footwear manufacturer. The brand will sponsor an entry in the Volvo Ocean Race in 2011-12. The campaign will be run by Emirates Team New Zealand. The announcement clarified some rumours, but started some new ones with Emirates Team NZ team boss Grant Dalton suggesting that given the lack of conflict with the America’s Cup, Alinghi may also enter the race.

Camper is the second shoe brand to announce an entry in the race, with global sports giant PUMA also announcing its plans to compete. Camper is a family-owned company which started making shoes on the Spanish island of Majorca in 1877. Today Camper operates directly 320 stores and ‘shop-in-shop’ locations in 42 countries and distributes its products through 2800 independent retailers. The sponsorship is believed to be in the region of 25 Million Euros.

In announcing the Volvo Ocean Race project, Camper said:

‘Competing in the Volvo Ocean Race 2011–12 provides Camper with the motivation to continue improving the quality of its products and its presence around the world. The history and the authenticity of the race, the human adventure, the effort, the desire to improve and the teamwork fully fit the Camper values. The Mediterranean as a territory and as a culture has always been at the centre of the Camper image. From Alicante this round-the-world race will be, without a doubt, a strong source of inspiration for the future of a brand that walks with imagination.

For us it is a privilege to take our first steps in the Volvo Ocean Race together with Emirates Team New Zealand, undoubtedly one of the most prestigious professional sailing teams in the world. Despite New Zealand being in the antipodes of Majorca, we feel very close to them sharing their way of thinking and so Emirates Team New Zealand makes us feel confident when undertaking this project.’

The Spanish sponsorship and identity will be treated very favourably under Spanish tax law, believed to return a 2:1 credit on every Euro invested in a project of this type.

The entrance of the New Zealand team was made possible through the expectation that the next America’s Cup will not take place until 2013 or 2014. The announcement is also another example of the growth of sailing ‘super-teams’; franchises that compete and leverage their sponsors across multiple platforms. Team New Zealand will not give up on the America’s Cup, rather it will split its activities across different disciplines.

Emirates Team New Zealand managing director Grant Dalton says:

‘The Volvo project instantly energises our team, allows our designers and engineers to get going and in Camper we have found a great partner. They are a family company with family values and a culture that fits very well with Emirates Team New Zealand and our family of sponsors. The team has the capacity to integrate a Volvo Ocean Race campaign to sit alongside its commitments to the Louis Vuitton Trophy regattas, the Audi MedCup 2010 and the next America’s Cup.

‘With Louis Vuitton, the team started the Louis Vuitton Trophy, Dean Barker and the team campaigned successfully on the Audi MedCup TP52 circuit last year and now we have a Volvo Ocean Race campaign to organise from scratch.’

Long time supporter of the team, Emirates Airlines will also benefit from the deal with the race scheduled to make a stopover in Abu-Dhabi. Emirates’ Divisional Senior Vice President, Corporate Communication, Boutros Boutros, said:

‘We are very pleased to continue our support of Emirates Team New Zealand through this venture. It will add a further dimension to the global reach of our sponsorship of the team, which has already been very successful for Emirates through the America’s Cup, the Louis Vuitton Trophy and the Audi MedCup. With this latest diversification, there are many benefits for the team, for New Zealand, and for Emirates, as well of course for Camper.

‘It will be fantastic to see the team competing in the United Arab Emirates, the home country of Emirates, when the Volvo Ocean Race comes to the capital city of Abu Dhabi. It will be a good opportunity to showcase what the UAE can offer in terms of five-star infrastructure, tourism and business attractions. ‘We are sure that this campaign will be run by Emirates Team New Zealand in the same thorough and competitive manner as all of its previous efforts, and we are only too happy to be associated with an initiative that meets the same professional standards that we continually strive to maintain as an airline.’

Not only will the Volvo Ocean Race start in Spain, the home of Camper and pass through home of Emirates Airlines, the race will also call in at Auckland. The arrival of Team New Zealand into the harbour will be an eagerly anticipated event of the race. CEO of the Volvo Ocean Race,  Knut Frostad said:

‘We are delighted to welcome Grant Dalton and Emirates Team New Zealand to the Volvo Ocean Race, which gives us our first proper New Zealand entry for many years. Dalton, a former winner of this event, brings with him not only a wealth of experience, but a very charismatic and highly competitive team of sailors. The people of Auckland will surely be very proud to watch the progress of Emirates Team New Zealand as it takes on some of the world’s best. I would also like to welcome Camper to the Volvo Ocean Race family. We look forward to working with their strong international brand, elevating the profile of their new team and our race.’

The Emirates Team New Zealand design team, headed by principal designer Marcelino Botin, will design the yacht. It will be built by Cookson Yachts, Auckland, and launched in the first quarter of 2011 before been sea-trialled and shipped to the Atlantic coast of Spain. The yacht will be called Camper and will carry the burgees of the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron and the Real Club Náutico de Palma.

Video of Grant Dalton talking on NZ television…

Photo Credit – Emirates Team New Zealand / Photo Chris Cameron ETNZ ©

The reality of modern professional sport is that money dictates much of the decision making process. That’s not news, but some decisions highlight just how much the sporting agenda is reliant on commercial backers in the parts of the sport where organisers have to attract funds from third parties and not rely on rich owners.

In the last edition of the Volvo Ocean Race, organisers took a risk and opened new sailing markets by diverting the course of the round the world race to India and China. While the stops allowed Volvo to promote commercial vehicles to growing markets, new audiences were also exposed to sailing.

Now, with the announcement of  Abu Dhabi as a stopover for the 2011-2012 edition of the Volvo Ocean Race, organisers have shown that they are willing to re-route the race almost anywhere to meet their commercial goals. The addition of the UAE stop will see boats having to sail up the east coast of Africa, past Somalia and close to the Iranian waters that BMW ORACLE said made the sailing of the America’s Cup in RAK impossible.

Race Director, Jack Lloyd told the UK Telegraph;

“We wouldn’t be targets in that we won’t be carrying millions of barrels of oil but kidnapping is a risk. We have systems in place for negotiations in case there is a kidnapping and the sailors will be made fully aware of the risks so they are prepared, just like last time.”

Well it is sold as life at the extreme…

The announcement signals that the Volvo Ocean Race has arrived as a major sporting event. Countries that want to promote themselves to a global audience are now saying – we need an F1 Grand Prix, we need to host a World Cup, we need to host an Olympic Games and we need to be a stopover on the Volvo Ocean Race. The news that neighbouring emirate Dubai will host the Louis Vuitton Series later this year would also have helped the VOR organisers in a very competitive region.

The agreement was signed between His Excellency Mubarak Al Muhairi, the director general of the Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority (ADTA) and Volvo Ocean Race CEO Knut Frostad.

Abu Dhabi has a well known objective to be the first place thought about when people think of the UAE. The first Abu Dhabi F1 Grand Prix was raced in 2009 and the growth of Etihad Airlines has shown that the emirate will do whatever it takes to raise its standing on the global stage. Little wonder then that Volvo Ocean Race CEO Knut Frostad said:

“We found in Abu Dhabi an incredible synergy. This destination has a long maritime history which it wishes to elevate to a new era while celebrating the achievements of the past. There was a willingness to meet our requirements, an understanding of the participants’ needs and an enthusiasm which simply stood out ahead of others.”

A boat from Abu Dhabi will also take its place on the start line of the 2011-12 race in Alicante, Spain in the autumn of next year. Team Abu Dhabi, a crew specially selected by the ADTA will campaign a new Volvo Open 70 which will be built in the UAE capital by the Abu Dhabi Mar Group.

His Excellency Mubarak Al Muhairi elaborated on how the race

“It is our ambition to include a UAE national in the crew who will be our ocean ambassador representing the emirate’s long seafaring heritage. The locally-constructed boat will also signal our potential as a new build and repair port, which will recall the heady days when vessels made on these shores set sail for months of pearling expeditions and proved to be among the sturdiest afloat.”

The new marina being built at Emirates Palace, the emirate’s signature hotel, will be the focal point of the host port.