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 ©

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.

The World Yacht Racing Forum is pleased to announce a new partnership with the Barcelona World Race, which joins Monaco based Horus Watches as Official Sponsors of the second Forum in Monaco from 9-10 December. Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority (ADTA) is Presenting Sponsor.

The Barcelona World Race is the double-handed round the world race sailed on IMOCA 60′s. The event is due to start on December 31, 2010 in Barcelona. “The World Yacht Racing Forum in Monaco promises to draw together the very best from the world of professional yacht racing, and as one of the leading events in the ocean racing calendar, the Barcelona World Race is rightly present, says Barcelona World Race Director General Andor Serra. “At just over one year from the start of the race, this gathering of the top people in the sport is a great communications and networking platform for the Barcelona World Race.”

Also joining the Forum as sponsor of the luncheon on Day 2 of the conference is the World Match Racing Tour, the world’s leading professional sailing series and official ISAF Special Event. Under new management, the Tour will present its new structure and program during the Forum on Thursday, December 10.

Held in parallel to the Forum, the inaugural Yacht Racing Design & Technology Symposium also welcomes the support of of Awlgrip and Holmatroas Silver Sponsors.
Owned by the Dutch multinational AkzoNobel since 2002, Awlgrip is a world leader in topside paint systems for professionals, with products specially developed for the yachting environment. Since 1967, Holmatro has manufactured and supplied high-pressure hydraulic equipment for specialised industries around the world. Holmatro Marine Equipment specialises in onboard hydraulic systems, meeting the needs of modern or classic yacht sailors.

The World Yacht Racing Forum and Design & Technology Symposium will once again create the platform for delegates to debate the key issues that are critical to the future of yacht racing. The event will focus on the socio-economic aspects of the sport as well as developments in media coverage and the technical and commercial aspects of large-scale sailing events, especially in terms of their organisation and promotion. Subjects such as new media, cost-cutting measures, the America’s Cup, Race Management, Composite Technology and Event Management will be presented and debated by the yachting’s leading figures plus industry experts from other sports including Formula 1 motorsports.

———————-

By the way – we’re using the hashtag #wyrf for Twitter posts about the World Yacht Racing Forum.

The statement included:

The Defender of the 33rd America’s Cup, Société Nautique de Genève (SNG), is to appeal New York Supreme Court Justice Kornreich’s decision of 30 October rejecting Ras Al Khaimah in the United Arab Emirates as the venue for the 33rd America’s Cup. SNG has applied for an expedited appeal to avoid any delay to the February 2010 Deed of Gift Match.

The choice of Ras Al Khaimah was made based on the plain language of Justice Cahn’s (Kornreich’s predecessor) May 2008 Court Order that ruled the location of the 33rd America’s Cup Match to be in ‘Valencia or any other location selected by the SNG’.

While Alinghi have buried the video with Ernesto Bertarelli behind their “Alinghi Friends” signup page, the ever helpful ‘Astrid in Dubai’ has put it up on Youtube.

Meanwhile, elsewhere in the region, the OC Group has launched an online brochure for the A100, including plans for several races and courses that use the waters that BMW ORACLE and GGYC allege are infested with terrorists. One of the races, the “Tour of Arabia” includes Kuwait and the UAE (though not Ras Al Khaimah) then passes through the narrow strait between the UAE and Iran.

Those watching the Abu Dhabi F1 Grand Prix over the weekend will have seen how a lot of money can turn an desert into an oasis of sport, but it’s hard to see an American court put aside years of middle eastern prejudice and reverse the decision made last week.

The lawyers keep taking the sailor’s money and it goes on… and on… and on…

Horus will become the title sponsor of the Superyacht Cup in a three year deal. They will become a main partner of all Infoma Yacht Group events.

André Grossmann, creator of the Horus time wear brand:

“This partnership is above all a real commitment. The Informa Yacht Group organise exclusive and top quality yachting events all around the world. These special events gather high-profile individuals who look for the finest things and the most innovative and creative products. To be associated with such an organisation gives us access to the most prestigious marketing platform in the world of yachting. The locations where the different events take place – including Abu Dhabi, Monaco and Palma, are welcoming and proactive cities who work hard to develop and promote their destination to high-end tourism.”

Informa Yacht Group’s Managing Director Andy Treadwell says:

“We are absolutely delighted to have Horus as a main sponsor for the group. We are actively seeking truly international partners, with exclusive and world-leading brands, who are interested in supporting our events in all the different areas where we currently operate. Horus are a very dynamic and ambitious new company in their sector, and we love their enthusiasm and approach. As with the Abu Dhabi Yacht Show, we are researching several new projects at the moment in areas where we believe there is a lot of potential to develop high-end events for the future. To do this, we need to have the right business partners on board.”

The Superyacht Cup has also resigned broadband provider Ship Eqip for a second year’s support of the Superyacht Cup.

Amongst the highlights of the event, an America’s Cup debate will unite team Alinghi and BMW ORACLE Racing, with Alinghi’s Brad Butterworth and BMW ORACLE Racing’s Tom Ehman joining Paul Cayard, Sir Keith Mills, Alessandra Pandarese and Stéphane Kandler on the panel.

Hosted by the Informa Yacht Group,a division of one of the world’s largest conference organizers Informa plc, the Forum will assemble the world’s leading sailing events, racing teams, media, TV networks and top sailing venues to discuss the opportunities for the future of yacht racing. Some of the key companies in sailing sponsorship will also be in attendance to assess the benefits and returns that sailing can deliver as a sponsorship platform.

The World Yacht Racing Forum will run in tandem with the fourth edition of the Motor Sport Business Forum, also taking place form 10-11 December at the Grimaldi Forum venue. Delegates from both Forums will have exclusive access to the networking and exhibition area of each Forum. The ‘Track & Ocean’ cocktail party on Wednesday 10th will provide a first ever opportunity for participants within both these high profile sports to meet and network with each other.

The Yacht Club de Monaco is the official host of the first edition of the conference, under the Patronage of HSH Prince Albert II. The Yacht Club de Monaco is one of the world’s oldest and most prestigious yacht clubs, located in the heart of Monte Carlo.

For last minute registrations for the Forum, visit www.worldyachtracingforum.com

As the national carriers, airlines like Emirates and Etihad understand the connection between high profile professional sport and marketing. In an article in The National, Peter Baugartner, the Executive Vice President of Marketing for Ethihad says “Sponorship is a substantial amount of Etihad’s marketing budget, and that has a reason. Especially when you are a young brand, a sponsorship can help you to really accelerate your brand awareness.”

Abu Dhabi is sponsoring the innaugural World Yacht Racing Forum in Monaco in December. 

He points to the company’s sponsorships with international brands such as Formula One, Ferrari and Chelsea football club as examples of opportunities for the growing airline to communicate to a global audience.

The airline also targets sports such as All-Ireland Hurling, that may not be well known abroad, but are intensely popular in a market where Etihad has an important connection. “It’s something that is part of their culture, that’s very close to their heart,” he says. “We immediately built emotional loyalty that normally in the value chain comes at the very end… It gave us overnight fame in Ireland.”

[ad#banner]

ADTA is the apex body which manages the tourism business of Abu Dhabi, the largest of seven emirates which form the United Arab Emirates. It recently announced a global partnership with Informa Yacht Group (IYG), the global yachting events business which is launching the WYRF, in a move designed to promote the destination’s expansive leisure maritime prowess.

As part of the agreement, Abu Dhabi will use IYG’s yachting events portfolio as a global marketing platform. ADTA will be present at all the other major Informa Yacht Group events including The Superyacht Cup regattas in Palma and Antigua, the Monaco Yacht Show, and the inaugural Abu Dhabi Yacht Show next March 2009.

‘Abu Dhabi has a strong maritime heritage and unrivalled opportunities for yacht racing and marine leisure in general, with over 200 islands off its mainland shores,’ said His Excellency Mubarak Al Muhairi, Director General, ADTA. ‘These cultural and geographic strengths are now being enhanced by an increasing number of world-class marinas being planned by developers throughout the emirate.

This is the right initiative and the right time and will help position Abu Dhabi as an international yachting and yacht racing destination.’

Marine leisure and yacht racing are the latest in a string of world-class sporting initiatives undertaken by Abu Dhabi, which is staging the inaugural Abu Dhabi Formula One Grand Prix in November 2009, and is already heavily involved in the World Rally Championship with its BP-Ford Team Abu Dhabi, the annual staging of the Red Bull Air Race, the Abu Dhabi Adventure Challenge endurance race and its recent successful bid to host the 2009/2010 FIFA Club World Cup.

The World Yacht Racing Forum will bring together race organizers, marine leisure venues, sponsors, sail racing teams and their suppliers, yacht builders and designers, and the attendant press and media, from all over the planet – in short, all the businesses and organizations that promote, and depend upon, the world of yacht racing – to network, to discuss and debate the future of the sport, and to inter-promote the commercial opportunities.

“Judging by the extraordinary response from practically all the best-known personalities and events in yacht racing, this Forum is clearly long overdue, and destined to become a major annual focal point for the whole of the yacht racing industry. With such an international gathering, the timing can never be perfect for everybody, but even those who are already committed to other events in other parts of the world, are making the effort to be there. For example, Knut Frostad and Marcus Hutchinson, CEO and Communications Director respectively of the Volvo Ocean Race, are flying straight from the prize-giving ceremony at the finish of the first leg in Kochi, India, to take part in the forum, before flying back to India the next day,” said Andy Treadwell, Joint Managing Director of IYG.

“Our World forum in Monaco provides an ideal platform for Abu Dhabi to promote its yacht racing and leisure resources, including its world-class racing conditions and infrastructure, as well as the growing popularity of the sport – and the subsequent opportunities – in the Gulf region,” he added. “The co-location with the Motorsport Business Forum, and its focus on the business world of Formula One Grand Prix racing, is also strategic for the future; we see great synergies between the commercial opportunities surrounding both sports. And Abu Dhabi is investing in both next year.”