Volvo Ocean Race: The Next Decade<\/p>\n
Key announcements from the Gothenburg event:<\/p>\n
Sailing\u2019s ultimate test: From the edition after 2017-18, the Volvo Ocean Race will be contested in a combination of a 60-foot foil-assisted monohull for the ocean legs and a 32-50 foot \u2018flying\u2019 catamaran for use in the In-Port Race Series. Together, they will establish the Volvo Ocean Race as sailing\u2019s ultimate all-round test and strengthen its reputation as the ultimate test of a team in professional sport.<\/p>\n
Foil-assisted monohull: The One Design monohull from the in-demand French naval architect Guillaume Verdier will use the latest generation foiling technology to make it incredibly fast to sail and spectacular to watch. Crew numbers are likely to be between 5 and 7, with incentives continuing for mixed male-female crews and youth sailors. The race will build eight of the new monohulls and deliver them from January 2019 onwards. They will be available to lease by teams to reduce campaign start-up costs, with sponsors involved in the current 2017-18 race to be given first option when Notice of Race and Commercial Participation Agreements are published this October.<\/p>\n
IMOCA compatibility: Uniquely, the design brief retains an option to allow the boat platform to be converted, inexpensively and quickly, to a fully rules-compliant short-handed IMOCA boat. The 60-foot IMOCA class boats, used in iconic races such as the solo Vend\u00e9e Globe, have been the drivers of some incredible technical innovation over the past few decades.<\/p>\n
via Volvo Ocean Race\u2019s bold new vision creates professional sailing\u2019s ultimate all round test| Volvo Ocean Race<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Volvo Ocean Race: The Next Decade Key announcements from the Gothenburg event: Sailing\u2019s ultimate test: From the edition after 2017-18, the Volvo Ocean Race will be contested in a combination of a 60-foot foil-assisted monohull for the ocean legs and … Continue reading