To register for the Media Zone please visit:
www.volvooceanrace.com/mediazone.

Having sailed from ports around Europe to take part, the 15-boat fleet now assembled in Alicante includes competitors from the very first Whitbread Round the World Race in 1973-74 through to the 2008-09 edition of the Volvo Ocean Race.

Competitors

From the inaugural Whitbread Race in 1973-74 will be the 55’ Tauranga from Italy, the British Royal Navy’s Adventure, represented by her sister ship Dasher, which also competed in the 1997-98 race, and the 77′ maxi Great Britain II, the only yacht ever to take part in five consecutive Whitbread Round the World Races.

From the 1997-98 race will be the British 65’ sloop King’s Legend, along with the 57’ Berge Viking from Norway and the 65’ French yacht Gauloises III from the 1981-82 edition.

Also from France will be L’Espirit d’Equipe, the winning yacht from the 1985-86 race.

Racing against each other for the first time since the 1989-90 race will be the maxi yachts Rothmans, Charles Jourdan, Steinlager 2 and Fisher & Paykel.

Two Whitbread 60s will be competing: Heineken, the first of the class to be built which raced in the 1993-94 race with an all girl crew; as well as Assa Abloy from the 2001-02 race.

Representing the modern day Volvo Open 70 class will be Telefónica Black and Green Dragon, both Volvo Ocean Race competitors in 2008-09.

Racing

Two days of Legends racing will take place around inshore courses to maximise the viewing opportunities for spectators on the shore.

The fleet will race around a single course, but given the range of size and performance of the yachts, in an effort to ensure the races culminate in an exciting finish, a pursuit race format will be used, where the older, slower yachts are given a head start over the faster more modern ones.

Legends Reunion

In addition to the skippers and crews sailing in the Legends Regatta, event organisers are also preparing to welcome a 400 plus contingent of competitors from past races to the Reunion, led by Legends Ambassadors Lady Pippa Blake, Tracy Edwards MBE, Sir Chay Blyth CBE, BEM, Magnus Olsson, Skip Novak, Pierre Fehlmann and Alain Gabbay.

Trophies

The overall winner of the Volvo Ocean Race Legends Regatta will be presented with the Sir Peter Blake Trophy, a renamed antique trophy made in 1926 by Atkins Brothers of Sheffield, England.

The 33.5 cm hallmarked silver trophy will be presented by Lady Pippa Blake as a tribute to her late husband, Sir Peter Blake, who competed in the first five Whitbread Round the World Races and won all five legs of the 1989-90 edition aboard Steinlager 2.

In addition, on both race days special trophies and awards will be presented, including a memorial naval ceremonial sword trophy in honour of the long and valuable involvement with the race of past Whitbread Race CEO and Race Director, the late Ian Bailey-Willmot.

Event Programme

The Volvo Ocean Race Legends Regatta features a full programme of events, beginning with a Welcome Cocktail Party at the Volvo Pavilion in the race village on the evening of Tuesday November 1.

On the morning of Wednesday November 2 the fleet will take part in a parade of sail before racing gets underway in the afternoon. That evening there will be a Cocktail Party in the Legends Café/Bar in the Alicante Race Village.

On Thursday 3 November the fleet will take part in another parade of sail before more racing in the afternoon. The Prizegiving Dinner will take place that evening.

Friday November 4 has been designated a lay day and a selection of the Legends yachts will be open for viewing by the public in the race village.

Friday morning will also see the launch of the book ‘Sailing Legends’, a history of the Whitbread and Volvo Ocean Races written by sailing journalists Bob Fisher and Barry Pickthall. The authors will take part in a book signing at the Volvo Ocean Race Club in the Alicante Race Village..

On Saturday November 5, the Legends fleet will take part in a final parade of sail before joining the spectator fleet to watch the six-boat Volvo Ocean Race 2011-12 fleet set off on Leg 1 to Cape Town, South Africa.

Legends Regatta and Reunion Ambassadors

Lady Pippa Blake
 (Great Britain)
Tracy Edwards MBE (Great Britain)
Sir Chay Blyth CBE, BEM (Great Britain)
Magnus Olsson
(Sweden)
Skip Novak
 (USA)
Pierre Fehlmann
(Switzerland)
Alain Gabbay (France)

Legends Regatta and Reunion Entry List

1.  Tauranga (1973-74)

2.  Adventure (1973-74 1977-78)

3.  Great Britain II (first five races)

4.  King’s Legend (1977-78)

5.  Berge Viking (1981-82)

6.  Gauloises III (1981-82)

7.  L’Esprit d’Equipe (1985-86)

8.  Rothmans (1989-90)

9.   Charles Jourdan (1989-90)

10. Steinlager 2 (1989-90)

11. Fisher & Paykel (1989-90)

12. Heineken (1993-94)

13. Assa Abloy (2001-02)

14. Telefónica Black (2008-09)

15. Green Dragon (2008-09)

Part of the Volvo Ocean Race’s commitment to youth sailing worldwide, the Academy comprises four initiatives designed to inspire, educate and entertain local youngsters at each of the host ports, while leaving a lasting legacy of youth sailing in each of the countries visited by the race.

During the 2011-12 race the Academy Try Sailing initiative aims to give 14,000, children the chance to go afloat in one of the Academy’s fleet of branded 5.6 metre Ludic dinghies.

Each host port also features an Academy Team Racing regatta and clinic, sailed in branded singlehanded Optimist dinghies with eight, four-sailor, mixed-gender junior teams selected through national trials in each of the host port countries.

The RS:X Youth Stopover Tour is a collaboration between the Volvo Ocean Race and the RS:X Class Association, aiming to promote high level youth windsurfing around the world. Each host port will showcase two days of spectacular close-quarters windsurfing competition, using the very latest Olympic RS:X equipment provided by manufacturer Neil Pryde.

Racing is divided into separate divisions for boys and girls. To earn their place on the RS:X Youth Stopover Tour, all the competing board sailors have previously qualified via national trials in the host port country.

In conjunction with the International Sailing Federation (ISAF) the Academy also operates a clinic to train umpires from the host country. Delegates receive both classroom and on the water tuition from a team of ISAF accredited international umpires led by Academy chief coach Chris Atkins.

Academy Team Racing takes place on the weekend before the in-port race and leg start at each of the ports. Prior to the team racing competition the sailors receive expert coaching on team racing technique.

Alicante hosts the Iberdrola In-Port Race on October 29, before the six-boat Volvo Ocean Race fleet sets off on the first leg on November 5.

The grand final of Alicante’s Academy Team Racing came down to a single deciding race between Real Club Náutico Torrevieja and Club Náutico Alicante Costa Blanca. Alicante Costa Blanca prevailed in that decisive final heat to claim the title.

The final element of the Academy is Wisdom’s Ocean Zone, an opportunity for all participants to learn about the environmental issues facing the world’s oceans through a powerful short movie created by the environmental artist group Skeleton Sea.

Told from the viewpoint of a baby albatross, the hard hitting and thought provoking film lays out the impact that individual behaviour has on the oceans and their marine life.

Academy participants are also given the chance to work with the Skeleton Sea artists on the creation of a special piece of art to be placed on permanent display at the Race Village site.

For more information visit: Volvo Ocean Race Academy, follow us on Facebook and subscribe to the Academy You Tube channel.

For more information on the Volvo Ocean Race please visit www.volvooceanrace.com

For media information on the Volvo Ocean Race, please contact:
Sophie Luther – Communications Manager (travelling)
Tel + 34 966 011 152 / Mob +34 606 894 940
sophie.luther@volvooceanrace.com

Christina Gaither- Press Assistant (Spanish language)
Tel + 34 966 011 158 / Mob +34 676 675 931
christina.gaither@volvooceanrace.com
Media Guide
Download in English (42 MB) or read flip version online

Images
High resolution images can be downloaded from http://images.volvooceanrace.com
Tim Stonton, Picture Desk Manager (Spain)
Tel +34 966 011 151 / Mob +34 606 905 497
tim.stonton@volvooceanrace.com

Broadcast
For video inquiries, please contact: television@volvooceanrace.com
Please visit www.thenewsmarket.com/volvooceanrace
For any assistance please contact sonia.kannengiesser@synapticdigital.com

Radio
For radio accreditation and requests please contact USP Content at: volvooceanrace@uspcontent.com
 
Editors’ Notes: The Volvo Ocean Race
•    The next Volvo Ocean Race will start in the Spanish port of Alicante in the autumn of 2011 and finish in Galway, Ireland during the summer of 2012.
•    The course of the race will include stopovers in Cape Town (South Africa), Abu Dhabi (UAE), Sanya (China), Auckland (New Zealand), Itajai (Brazil), Miami (USA), Lisbon (Portugal) and Lorient (France).
•    The first race first took place 38 years ago (as the Whitbread Round the World Race 1973-74), testing the crews against some of the most ferocious elements that man can encounter.
•    The 2011-12 race will be the 11th and cover 39,000 nautical miles.

Heineken is the second W60/Volvo Ocean 60 to enter the event and she will line up against ASSA ABLOY which finished second during the first Volvo Ocean Race in 2001-02.

She will be raced by a predominantly female crew which will include Dawn Riley, her original skipper, as well as some of her original all-female line-up. They will be joined by members of the pioneering crew of Maiden, the first all-female team to contest the round the world race, as well  EF Education/1997-98 and Amer Sports Too 2001-02 who took part in subsequent races.

Heineken will be brought to the Legends by current owner, Johannes Schwarz, who says: “The reunion will be a very special event for me as I will not only get to know the former skipper Dawn Riley and some crew members of my present boat, but also meet up and race against my previous boat ASSA ABLOY 1.”

Originally built for the 1993-94 W60 class winner Ross Field and named Yamaha 1, Heineken was used as a training boat for Field’s team. On completion of his race boat, Yamaha 1 was chartered to an American all-female team. Funds ran out during leg one, and race sponsor Heineken stepped in, bringing in Riley to skipper and repainting the boat in their green and white colours. Riley brought with her a handful of experienced sailors from the Maiden campaign of the previous race and set off into the Southern Ocean towards Fremantle, Western Australia.

The 1993-94 event was the last to include the giant maxi yachts, and they lined up against 10 sleek Whitbread 60s, especially designed for the Whitbread Round the World Race. The W60s were a threat to the maxis and had established themselves early on by finishing first, second and third in the Fastnet Race which preceded the start of leg one from Southampton, England.

The use of masthead spinnakers on the W60s during the Southern Ocean legs was banned by the race committee, fearing that the new breed of racer would either be uncontrollable or, worse, beat the maxi yachts into port, a fear that turned to reality when four of them beat Pierre Fehlmann’s leading maxi on the first Southern Ocean leg.  

Many competitors claimed that the final leg to Southampton was the toughest. Dawn Riley and her crew lost their rudder 800 nautical miles from the finish and were helped by the crew of maxi Uruguay Natural who handed over their spare rudder to help the Heineken crew finish the leg, albeit six days after the winner.

About Heineken
Rig: sloop
Designer: Farr Yacht Design
LOA 64’ (19.5m)
Crew: 12
Finished: 9 W60 Class
Elapsed time: 138.16
Skipper: Dawn Riley/USA

Ambassadors
Lady Pippa Blake
Tracy Edwards MBE
Sir Chay Blyth CBE, BEM
Magnus Olsson
Skip Novak
Pierre Fehlmann
Alain Gabbay

Entries in the Volvo Ocean Race Legends Regatta and Reunion

1.   Tauranga (1973-74)
2.   Adventure (1973-74 1977-78)
3.   Great Britain II (first five races)
4.   King’s Legend (1977-78)
5.   Berge Viking (1981-82)
6.   Gauloises III (1981-82)
7.   L’Esprit d’Equipe (1985-86)
8.   Rothmans (1989-90)
9.   Charles Jourdan (1989-90)
10. Steinlager 2 (1989-90)
11.  Fisher & Paykel (1989-90)
12.  Heineken (1993-94)
13.  Assa Abloy (2001-02)
14.  Telefónica Black (2008-09)
15.  Green Dragon (2008-09)

Festivities kick off at 1900 with a Rolling Stones tribute concert before the six teams competing in the world’s toughest crewed yacht race are presented. The night will culminate in a huge fireworks display lighting the skies over the Race Village just before 2200.

Like something from a Formula 1 grand prix, the Alicante Race Village is 40,000 square metres dedicated to entertainment with a programme brimming with concerts, shows, exhibitions, sailing clinics, rides, fireworks and restaurants.

It is also home to the Volvo Ocean Race Experience, an interactive attraction designed to suck landlubbers into the world of a Volvo Ocean Race sailor through its 3D cinema, simulator and winch grinding challenge. Artist collective Skeleton Sea will lead workshops as part of the Keep the Oceans Clean! Campaign, and look out around the Race Village for Wisdom, the mischievous albatross. 

The centrepiece of the Race Village will be the six 70ft Volvo Open 70 yachts and the crews that will race them 39,000 nautical miles through the world’s toughest oceans.

Team Telefónica, CAMPER with Emirates Team New Zealand, Team Sanya, Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing, Groupama sailing team and PUMA Ocean Racing powered by BERG Propulsion are the teams taking part. For the first time ever the team zones will be open to the public allowing fans to watch master boat builders and design experts at work.

Volvo Ocean Race CEO Knut Frostad said: “One of our objectives has been to transform the Volvo Ocean Race into a festival. On the water it’s a race and on land it’s a festival. We’re not a football match where it lasts for 90 minutes and then you go home – the Volvo Ocean Race is something to come to, experience, be seen at and ultimately enjoy.”

The Alicante Race Village opens from 1000 to 0030 from Sunday to Thursday, with a later closing time of 0130 on Fridays and Saturdays. It is free to enter except for some ticketed concerts.

The Race Village will also provide the perfect place to watch the yachts race – on October 29 when they lock horns in close-quarter combat metres from the shore and again on November 5 when the teams start their 6,500 nautical mile sprint to Cape Town, South Africa.

“What other major sporting event can you have access to for free?” said the Volvo Ocean Race’s Director of Operations Heather Sherer.

“There are so many entertainment opportunities that bring the feeling of being at sea to the shore, from the 3D cinema that is state-of-the-art that will give you a new perspective of life on board to the bouncing castle for the little ones.

“For the first time ever we are offering the opportunity to get up close with a Volvo Open 70, with a limited number of the public to be given dock side access to the fleet.”

This weekend sees the start of the Academy Team Racing Clinic, offering youngsters from sailing clubs across the region to compete against each other in single-handed Optimist dinghies. Try Sailing, another important initiative to inspire new generations of sailors, also gets underway, offering children a chance to try the sport for the first time.

Race village opening timetable (all times UTC+2):
1800 – Race Village opens to public
1900 – Rolling Stones tribute band
2030 – Opening ceremony including presentation of Volvo Ocean Race teams
2155 – Fireworks display

For more information on the Volvo Ocean Race please visit:
www.volvooceanrace.com

For media information on the Volvo Ocean Race, please contact:

Sophie Luther – Communications Manager (Spain)
Tel + 34 966 011 152  Mob +34 606 894 940
Sophie.luther@volvooceanrace.com
 
Christina Gaither- Press Assistant (Spanish language)
Tel + 34 966 011 158 Mob +34 676 675 931
christina.gaither@volvooceanrace.com
 
Images
High resolution images can be downloaded from http://images.volvooceanrace.com
 
Tim Stonton, Picture Desk Manager (in Spain)
Tel +34 966 011 151 Mob +34 606 905 497
tim.stonton@volvooceanrace.com

Full press information can be read and downloaded from http://press.volvooceanrace.com

Radio
For radio accreditation and requests please contact USP Content at:
volvooceanrace@uspcontent.com

Broadcast

For video inquiries, please contact:
television@volvooceanrace.com

Please visit www.thenewsmarket.com/volvooceanrace
For any assistance please contact sonia.kannengiesser@synapticdigital.com

Editors’ Notes: The Volvo Ocean Race
•    The Volvo Ocean Race starts in the Spanish port of Alicante with the first In-Port Race on October 29. Leg 1 starts on November 5 and the race will finish in Galway, Ireland in July, 2012.
•    The race will cover over 39,000 nautical miles and includes stopovers in Cape Town (South Africa), Abu Dhabi (UAE), Sanya (China), Auckland (New Zealand), Itajaí (Brazil), Miami (USA), Lisbon (Portugal) and Lorient (France).
•    The first race first took place 38 years ago (as the Whitbread Round the World Race 1973-74).
•    The 2011-12 race will be the 11th edition of the event.

The two state of the art racers will showcase 38 years of development in round the world racing since the first Whitbread in 1973-74, when they take their place next to the Legends fleet which spans 10 races. 

Both boats will compete in the regatta run over two days, creating a challenge for race director Jack Lloyd and his race management team, who will be setting inshore courses that work for maxi ketches such as the race-winning Steinlager 2 and her opponent from 1989-90 Fisher & Paykel, as well as for yachts such as the Italian Tauranga who took part in 1973, and, more recently the Whitbread/Volvo Ocean 60 Assa Abloy/2001-02. 

“The real challenge for us is to try to make all the yachts competitive with each other,” Lloyd explains. “The step-up in design and technology since 1973 has been massive and we would like all the boats to be sailing together. 

“We are looking at a ‘pursuit ‘ style of racing where the boats start the race in a staggered fashion according to their size, which we feel has the best chance of creating a dramatic and competitive finish for the fleet on each of the two days of race,” he adds.

Green Dragon has been entered in the Legends Regatta by Enda O’Coineen and John Killeen. O’Coineen has had a long association with the race, having been the driving force behind the NCB Ireland entry in 1989-90 and most recently Green Dragon in 2008-09, together with the very successful Galway stopover in the previous race.

The Green Dragon crew will include Killian Bushe who sailed on and built NCB Ireland and was builder of the winning entries in the last three races. The team plans to include a broad cross-section of Irish sailors who have participated in the Whitbread/Volvo Ocean Race and will also include Angela Farrell who sailed on Maiden and Deidre O’Callaghan on With Integrity during 1989-90.

Entering in the spirit of the regatta, the team will also travel with its own Irish band, the Green Dragon ‘Upstarts’.

Both Green Dragon and Telefónica Black were constructed especially for the last edition of the Volvo Ocean Race. Green Dragon, from the board of Reichel Pugh, finished in fifth position, one place above the Spanish boat, from Farr Yacht Design, which was part of a two-boat campaign for Team Telefónica 2008-09. Sister ship Telefónica Blue, with a new rig, a new paint job and a new name, Sanya, will race in this year’s Volvo under the leadership of race-winning skipper Mike Sanderson. 

Telefonica Black’s best moment was when she won the final leg of the Volvo Ocean Race 2008-09 from Stockholm to St Petersburg. Her navigator, Roger Nilson, was competing in his seventh Whitbread/Volvo Ocean Race and will be reunited with the boat during the Legends regatta.

GREEN DRAGON 2008-09
Rig: sloop
Designer: Reichel Pugh
LOA 64’ (19.5m)
Crew: 11
Finished: 5
Elapsed time: 135.05
Skipper: Ian Walker/GBR

TELEFONICA BLACK 2008-09
Rig: sloop
Designer: Farr Yacht Design
LOA 64’ (19.5m)
Crew: 11
Finished: 6
Elapsed time: 87.1 (DNF leg 4, DNS leg 5)
Skipper: Fernando Echávarri/ESP

Entries in the Volvo Ocean Race Legends Regatta and Reunion
- Tauranga (1973-74)
- Adventure (1973-74 1977-78)
- Great Britain II (first five races)
- King’s Legend (1977-78)
- Berge Viking (1981-82
- Gauloises III (1981-82)
- L’Esprit d’Equipe (1985-86)
- Rothmans (1989-90)
- Charles Jourdan (1989-90)
- Steinlager 2 (1989-90)
- Fisher & Paykel (1989-90)
- Assa Abloy (2001-02)
- Telefónica Black (2008-09)
- Green Dragon (2008-09)

Regatta Ambassadors
- Lady Pippa Blake
- Tracy Edwards MBE
- Sir Chay Blyth CBE, BEM
- Magnus Olsson
- Skip Novak
- Pierre Fehlmann
- Alain Gabbay

Born in 1954 in Egypt, Alain Gabbay arrived in France aged eight. Four years later, he won a sailing course by chance and that was the beginning of a life-long affiliation with the sea.

In 1973-74, Gabbay approached Eric Tabarly asking if he could become part of the French sailing hero’s crew in the first edition of the Whitbread. “Too young to go round the world,” answered Tabarly one month later, though the two men enjoyed this first contact and would always be close to each other.

Gabbay did not lose faith. He wanted to do this race, the greatest sailing challenge of the time and, to gain experience he competed in the Trans-Atlantic race in 1976 as the youngest competitor.

Two years later, his dream came true when, at the age of 23, he was the skipper of 33 EXPORT for the second Whitbread in 1977-78, finishing in 10th place and winning the Neptune d’Or prize for the best skipper.

The Whitbread was addictive and as soon as Gabbay was back on the dock he was planning his next campaign. This time he wanted a new boat — one that could take on the very best teams now lining up for the third running of the race.

His determination paid off and he secured funding from champagne company Charles Heidsieck. Battling around the world with eventual winner Conny van Rieschoten and his Swan 65 Flyer, Gabbay was beaten into second place. It was a tough loss, but one that left him more determined than ever.  

His final race around the world came eight years later with Charles Jourdan in 1989-90. Although a whale strike in the Southern Ocean nearly scuppered his chances of completion, an incident which raised international media interest, he still finished sixth overall. 

Today Gabbay still races for his own pleasure, but dedicates most of his time to his boatyard in La Ciotat in southern France. If you ask him what the Whitbread means to him, however, he will tell you: “Magical. What else?”

He was skipper of three boats in the Whitbread Round the World Race:
1977-78 33 Export (10th) – aged 23
1981-82 Charles Heidsieck III (2nd)
1989-90 Charles Jourdan (6th)

Entries in the Volvo Ocean Race Legends Regatta and Reunion

- Tauranga 1973-74 (Swan 55’ yawl)
- Adventure/Dasher 1973-74 and 1977-78 (Nicholson 55’)
- Great Britain II/Whitbread Heritage (Maxi ketch – took part in the first five races)
- King’s Legend 1977-78 (sloop)
- Berge Viking 1981-82 (Swan 57)
- Gauloises III 1981-82 (62’ Sloop) sailed by the French crew of Grand Louis/Japy-Hermes and Kriter IX
- L’Esprit d’Equipe 1985-86 (sloop)
- Rothmans 1989-90 (Maxi sloop)
- Charles Jourdan 1989-90 (Maxi sloop)
- Steinlager 2 1989-90 (Maxi Ketch)
- Fisher & Paykel 1989-90 (maxi-ketch)
- Heineken (Whitbread 60/Volvo Ocean 60)
- ASSA ABLOY 2001-02 (Volvo Ocean 60)
- Telefónoca Black 2008-09 (Volvo Open 70)
- Green Dragon 2008-09 (Volvo Open 70)

Regatta Ambassadors
- Lady Blake
- Sir Chay Blyth CBE, BEM
- Magnus Olsson
- Skip Novak
- Tracy Edwards MBE
- Pierre Fehlmann
- Alain Gabbay

The official Notice of Race and schedule of events can be downloaded here: Legends Regatta Information

For information on the Volvo Ocean Race Legends Regatta, please contact:

Lizzie Ward – Race Press Officer (UK)
Mob +44 7801 185 320
lizzie.ward@volvooceanrace.com

Howard Gibbons – Project Manager (UK)
Mob +44 771 4455544
howard.gibbons@volvooceanrace.com

More information on the regatta can be found at the official website: www.volvooceanrace.com.

For media information on the Volvo Ocean Race, please contact:

Sophie Luther – Communications Manager (Spain)
Tel + 34 966 011 152 /  Mob +34 606 894 940
sophie.luther@volvooceanrace.com

Images
High resolution images can be downloaded from http://images.volvooceanrace.com
Tim Stonton, Picture Desk Manager (Spain)
Tel +34 966 011 151 Mob +34 606 905 497
tim.stonton@volvooceanrace.com

About the Volvo Ocean Race Legends Regatta and Reunion
•    The first ever official reunion of all who have sailed in the world’s premier ocean race since the inaugural race in 1973-74.
•    To be held in Alicante, Spain from 1-5 November 2011, the week between Alicante In-Port Race and the start of leg one of the Volvo Ocean Race.
•    A full racing schedule over two days.
•    Will conclude with a departure ceremony and parade of sail to escort the Volvo Ocean Race fleet to the start line for leg one.
•    A rich shoreside programme includes a regatta prizegiving, a gala dinner and a host of other social events.
•    Chat shows and forums after racing.
•    Legends entries open for public viewing.
•    148 boats have crossed the start line in the 37-year history of The Whitbread/Volvo Ocean Race.
•    1974 crew competed in the first 10 events.
•    The first 27,000 nautical-mile race first took place 38 years ago (as the Whitbread Round the World Race 1973-74), testing the crews against some of the most ferocious elements that man can encounter.
•    The Volvo Ocean Race 2011-12 will be the 11th edition of the event.

In 1977-78, owned by English gentleman Nick Ratcliff, flying the British ensign and drawing on the talent of a multinational professional crew, King’s Legend — a sloop rigged Swan 65 built by Nautor in Finland — came second behind Flyer.

“On King’s Legend we had a real boat race on our hands as the pre-race favourite, Flyer, had exactly the same handicap rating,” Novak, one of the Legends Ambassadors, recalled.

“The wealthy Dutchman, Cornelius van Rietschoten beat us into Cape Town by only two hours after a hard-fought upwind battle in the South Atlantic. But the most poignant moment for me was seeing Table Mountain on the horizon from 50 miles out, having navigated there with ‘a sextant and a time piece’.

“I will never forget the first squall that ripped through as we sailed into the mighty Southern Ocean,” Novak recalls. “We had full sail, YESSIREE! – spinnaker, blooper, and staysail , the works, and we decided to ‘ride it out’ with much bravado.

It took the crew five hours to clear up the mess after we gybed her ‘Chinese’ and got pinned on our side in what can best be described as a snow storm. Among other things, we blew the spinnaker and the blooper, broke the spinnaker pole, the halyard and the after-guy, and shattered most of our egos. But this early wake-up call to survival helped us to beat the Dutchman into Auckland, which meant we were level pegging halfway round the world.

“The next crew drama was when a leak was discovered at the rudderpost, which was opening and closing in the huge waves. We made contact with the crew of Adventure, Great Britain II (both yachts will attend the reunion), and Heath’s Condor, all of whom agreed to listen out for King’s Legend via the radio every six hours.”

After two days of worry, the crew was able to bring the leak under control. However the event was a stark reminder that these are desolate oceans populated only by albatross, whales and ice, with no shipping within thousands of miles.

After a massive broach while stampeding towards Cape Horn, water from the heads found its way into the SSB radio, which immediately ceased to function. “It may seem strange today,” says Novak, “but no-one was in the least alarmed that we were completely cut off from the outside world.”

By being one degree of latitude too far south, King’s Legend lost Flyer on the scorecard forever, and trailed her across the finish line to take second overall.
Crewmember Chris Barker raced with Novak four years later on Alaska Eagle and again on Drum, which famously capsized without loss of life when her keel fell off in the 1985 Fastnet Race, with co-owner Simon Le Bon on board.

“As dedicated spokesperson for King’s Legend, I have made fresh contact with many of the original crew,” said New Zealander Barker. “They have all lived colourful lives scattered across the oceans of the world. Hanging on and watching the Southern Ocean in full rage has changed all our lives forever, and there’s many a tale yet to be told. Our sponsor, the developer of The Jalousie Enclave and founder of ACSC, Pascal Mahvi, and his wife Caryl, will join us for the regatta in Alicante. Skip and I look forward to meeting our old shipmates, and to sailing with Pascal again.”

About King’s Legend
Rig: Sloop
Designer: Sparkman & Stephens
LOA 65’ (19.8m)
Crew: 11
Finished: 2nd 1977-78
Elapsed time: 138.15.47.24
Skippers: Nick Ratcliff/Mike Clancy

About King’s Legend crew/Whitbread history
Legs 1,3,4
- Nicholas Ratcliff UK – Owner and Skipper
- Round the World
- Skip Novak  USA – Kings Legend, Alaska Eagle, Drum, Fazisi
- William Porter  GBR – UK (F T Clipper Race 75/76), Adventure, Kings Legend
- Edward Alison  USA – Kings Legend, Alaska Eagle, Phillips Innovator
- Greg Tuxworth  USA
- Hans Savimaki  AUS
- John Roberts  GBR
Legs 1,2,3
- Michael Clancy USA- Skipper Leg 2
- Charles McKee  USA
- W. D Birchenough Jnr  USA
Legs 2,3,4
- Bryan Dawson  NZL
Leg 1
- Jack Bossert  USA
Leg 2
- Richard Bertie  RSA
Leg 4
- Chris Barker  NZ – Debenhams, Kings Legend, Alaska Eagle, Drum, The Card
- Jacques Sarasin  SUI
- Jean Vincent Blondiou  BEL

Notes for Editors
Three Swan 65s took part in the 1977-78 Whitbread Round the World Race:
King’s Legend (finished 2nd)
Disque d’Or (Pierre Fehlmann/4th)
ADC Accutrac (Clare Francis/5th)
(Sayula II, winner of the first Round the World Race was also a Swan 65)

For more information on King’s Legend, please contact:
Femke Lobach – Charter Operations
Skype: femkelobach and Mob: +31 65 123 3460
info@kingslegend.com
www.kingslegend.com

For media information on King’s Legend, please contact:
Chris Barker
Mob +64 27 44 88 020
chris.barker@harcourts.co.nz
For King’s Legend race images, please contact:
Philippe Schaff
Tel +36 1245 8146
photo@philippeschaff.com

Barry Pickthall
Tel + 44 1243 555561
ppl@mistral.co.uk

About Jalousie Enclave,  ACSC, and St Lucia

The Jalousie Enclave is an exclusive 204 acre residential development on the southwest corner of St Lucia, at the centre of the West Indies in the Caribbean Sea. The development includes 88 freehold titles within the historic Jalousie Estate which was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2004. There is a strong political and popular commitment to the protection and management of the tropical forest and the Pitons, which are two majestic pinnacles of ancient lava, and the sea floor off the beach between them. 

ACSC Association, headed by Pascal Mahvi is a registered philanthropic organisation dedicated to bettering the lives of Saint Lucians. ACSC plans to work with Jalousie Enclave, Porteon Caribbean Ltd, and Air Tropics Ltd, creating jobs in St Lucia.

For more information on Jalousie Enclave and ACSC please contact:
Jalousie Enclave:   www.jalousie-enclave.lc and info@jalousie-enclave.lc
ACSC Association:  info@acsc-stlucia.org
Erick Carlson – Director of Marketing  Erick@jalousie.lc

The official Notice of Race and schedule of events can be downloaded here

For information on the Volvo Ocean Race Legends Regatta, please contact:

Lizzie Ward – Race Press Officer (UK)
Mob +44 7801 185 320
lizzie.ward@volvooceanrace.com
Howard Gibbons – Project Manager (UK)
Mob +44 771 4455544
howard.gibbons@volvooceanrace.com
More information on the regatta can be found at the official website: www.volvooceanrace.com.

 For media information on the Volvo Ocean Race, please contact:

Sophie Luther – Communications Manager (Spain)
Tel + 34 966 011 152 /  Mob +34 606 894 940
sophie.luther@volvooceanrace.com

Images
High resolution images can be downloaded from http://images.volvooceanrace.com
Tim Stonton, Picture Desk Manager (Spain)
Tel +34 966 011 151 Mob +34 606 905 497
tim.stonton@volvooceanrace.com 
 
Notes for Editors:
Entries in the Volvo Ocean Race Legends Regatta and Reunion
•    Copernicus 1973-74 (45’ sloop: the smallest boat ever to race)
•    Great Britain II/Whitbread Heritage (Maxi ketch – took part in the first five races)
•    Rothmans 1989-90 (Maxi sloop)
•    Berge Viking 1981-82 (Swan 57)
•    Charles Jourdan 1989-90 (Maxi sloop)
•    Steinlager 2 1989-90 (Maxi Ketch)
•    Gauloises III 1981-82 (62’ Sloop) sailed by the French crew of Grand Louis/Japy-  Hermes and Kriter IX
•    Traité de Rome 1977-78 and 1981-82 (51’ aluminium sloop)
•    Adventure/Dasher 1973-74 and 1977-78 (Nicholson 55’)
•    Tauranga 1973-74 (Swan 55’ yawl)
•    ASSA ABLOY 2001-02 (Volvo Ocean 60)
•    Fisher & Paykel 1989-90 (maxi-ketch)
•    L’Esprit d’Equipe 1985-86 (sloop)
•    King’s Legend 1977-78 (sloop)

Regatta Ambassadors
•    Lady Blake
•    Sir Chay Blyth CBE, BEM
•    Magnus Olsson
•    Skip Novak
•    Tracy Edwards MBE
•    Pierre Fehlmann

About the Volvo Ocean Race Legends Regatta and Reunion
•    The first ever official reunion of all who have sailed in the world’s premier ocean race since the inaugural race in 1973-74.
•    To be held in Alicante, Spain from 1-5 November 2011, the week between Alicante In-Port Race and the start of leg one of the Volvo Ocean Race.
•    A full racing schedule over two days.
•    Will conclude with a departure ceremony and parade of sail to escort the Volvo Ocean Race fleet to the start line for leg one.
•    A rich shoreside programme includes a regatta prizegiving, a gala dinner and a host of other social events.
•    Chat shows and forums after racing.
•    Legends entries open for public viewing.
•    148 boats have crossed the start line in the 37-year history of The Whitbread/Volvo Ocean Race.
•    1974 crew competed in the first 10 events.
•    The first 27,000 nautical-mile race first took place 38 years ago (as the Whitbread Round the World Race 1973-74), testing the crews against some of the most ferocious elements that man can encounter.
•    The Volvo Ocean Race 2011-12 will be the 11th edition of the event.

But the multi-million pound Chelsea forward admitted one leg of the world’s toughest crewed yacht race would be enough after seeing the cramped conditions down below on cutting edge Volvo Open 70 race boat CAMPER.

The first leg of the elite race takes the fleet from Alicante to Cape Town in a gruelling 6,500 mile journey through the Atlantic – the first of nine legs in a 39,000-nm race that will not finish until July 2012 in Galway, Ireland.

“To sail on these boats would be a great experience but I think when I got to Cape Town I would be on the first plane home,” the 2010 World Cup winner said as he visited the Alicante Race Village just three days before it throws open the doors to the public on Friday.

“One leg would be enough – it would be difficult to do it until July.”

Torres was joined at the Alicante Race Village by his Spanish team mates including Xavi and David Villa of Barcelona and Real Madrid’s Iker Casillas ahead of their European Championship qualifier against Scotland tonight.

“It’s amazing to see how they have to survive without anything inside the boat.” Torres added. “I was talking with one of the sailors and he told me they do it because they love it, just like we play football because we love it.

“There is going to be 11 of them on that boat until July – it’s amazing.”

The squad walked through the Alicante Race Village, which will open on Friday, October 14 and host the race until the start of the first leg on November 5.

The visit was a welcome boost for the CAMPER with Emirates Team New Zealand crew who are one of six teams contesting the race, along with Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing, Groupama sailing team, PUMA Ocean Racing powered by BERG Propulsion, Team Sanya and Team Telefónica. All are in the final stages of preparing for the round the world race starting with the first in-port race on October 29.

CAMPER skipper Chris Nicholson said: “It was great to have the footballers on board. Five or six of them came down below and they were really interested. These guys are superstars and it was fantastic to be able to show them round CAMPER.”

Yesterday the Volvo Ocean Race played host to a press conference with coach Vicente del Bosque, who masterminded Spain’s World Cup triumph in South Africa last year, and players Sergio Ramos, Jordi Alba and Thiago Alcantara.

The 30,000-capacity Estadio José Rico Pérez in Alicante, home of Hercules, will host the Group I qualifier, which kicks off this evening at 2045 local time.

For more information on the Volvo Ocean Race please visit:
www.volvooceanrace.com

For media information on the Volvo Ocean Race, please contact:

Sophie Luther – Communications Manager (Spain)
Tel + 34 966 011 152  Mob +34 606 894 940
Sophie.luther@volvooceanrace.com
 
Christina Gaither- Press Assistant (Spanish language)
Tel + 34 966 011 158 Mob +34 676 675 931
christina.gaither@volvooceanrace.com
 
Images
High resolution images can be downloaded from http://images.volvooceanrace.com
 
Tim Stonton, Picture Desk Manager (in Spain)
Tel +34 966 011 151 Mob +34 606 905 497
tim.stonton@volvooceanrace.com

Full press information can be read and downloaded from http://press.volvooceanrace.com

Radio
For radio accreditation and requests please contact USP Content at:
volvooceanrace@uspcontent.com

Broadcast

For video inquiries, please contact:
television@volvooceanrace.com

Please visit www.thenewsmarket.com/volvooceanrace
For any assistance please contact sonia.kannengiesser@synapticdigital.com

FTP Download
FTP Address: data.vemuk.com
(On Internet: ftp://data.vemuk.com)
Username – TV_Share2
Password – Volvo97

Path:
2011-12 VNRs/General/Spanish national football team visits Volvo Ocean Race 111011/

Finished VNR:
Spanish national football team visits Volvo Ocean Race 111011

Robert Penner – Head of Distribution – for TV requests (based in Spain)
Tel + 34 966 011 167 / Mob + 34 682 700 167
robert.penner@volvooceanrace.com

Editors’ Notes: The Volvo Ocean Race
•    The Volvo Ocean Race starts in the Spanish port of Alicante with the first In-Port Race on October 29. Leg 1 starts on November 5 and the race will finish in Galway, Ireland in July, 2012.
•    The race will cover over 39,000 nautical miles and includes stopovers in Cape Town (South Africa), Abu Dhabi (UAE), Sanya (China), Auckland (New Zealand), Itajaí (Brazil), Miami (USA), Lisbon (Portugal) and Lorient (France).
•    The first race first took place 38 years ago (as the Whitbread Round the World Race 1973-74).
•    The 2011-12 race will be the 11th edition of the event.

Twenty-five years ago, I gathered together a team of 10 amazing sailors who built a campaign like no one had ever done before,” says the veteran skipper who was 29 years old when he realised his dream of entering the Whitbread Round the World Race in 1985-86.

“Winning was our wildest dream and to achieve it we prepared carefully, trained hard and optimised the boat to the limits of possibility. It was all this preparation combined with the talent of our crew that allow us to be – so far – the only French team to win this race around the world.

“I am very pleased to reunite with this same crew, the heart of L’Esprit d’Equipe, and we are proud to support the start of the Volvo Ocean Race alongside the other crews who have created the legend of Whitbread/Volvo Ocean Race. We will be there too, to support Groupama 4, France’s entry this time,” he adds.

Back in 1985, the French sailor had chosen a boat built for the previous race. The former 33 Export was a lightweight Briand design that had shown great promise until losing her mast in the Southern Ocean. Péan asked the designer to update the alloy yacht and, after spending three months in a shipyard, she re-emerged as L’Esprit d’Equipe, meaning ‘team spirit’.

By the time of the Fastnet Race, held a month ahead of the Whitbread, Péan and his crew were ready. They finished second among the Whitbread contenders, behind the 80’ maxi Atlantic Privateer.

L’Esprit d’Equipe arrived in Cape Town at the finish of the first leg with nothing more than flaked paintwork to take an 11-hour lead over nearest rival, the Dutch yacht Philips Innovator. On leg two she was becalmed for two days on the approach to Auckland, which allowed Philips Innovator to take the advantage. But, during the New Zealand stopover, the crew noticed the mast was bent. A sleeve was bolted to secure the damage and Péan set off again into the Southern Ocean.

Eleven days out into the ice-strewn South Atlantic, Péan reported to race control that the mast had split in two places below deck while surfing towards Cape Horn. More sleeves were constructed by the crew but they didn’t hold back and much to Equity and Law’s consternation, they continued to push the boat as hard as they could. By the time they reached the Uruguayan stopover, L’Esprit d’Equipe had recaptured the lead and had a five hour advantage. Equipped with a new section of mast, Péan and his crew sailed the perfect final leg to claim the winner’s position.

L’Esprit d’Equipe will be joined at the Volvo Ocean Race Legends by some of the most interesting and famous boats ever to race around the world. Original crew from over 60 boats which have competed in the past 10 races are planning their journeys to Spain, but by plane and not by boat, in order to reminisce about past victories and meet up with old friends.

About L’Esprit d’Equipe
Rig: Sloop
Designer: Philippe Briand
LOA 58’ (17.6m)
Crew: 8-9
Finished: WINNER
Elapsed time: 132.00
Skipper:  Lionel Péan

For information on the Volvo Ocean Race Legends Regatta, please contact:

Lizzie Ward – Race Press Officer (UK)
Mob +44 7801 185 320
lizzie.ward@volvooceanrace.com
Howard Gibbons – Project Manager (UK)
Mob +44 771 4455544
howard.gibbons@volvooceanrace.com

More information on the regatta can be found at the official website: www.volvooceanrace.com.

Entries in the Volvo Ocean Race Legends Regatta and Reunion

•    Copernicus 1973-74 (45’ sloop: the smallest boat ever to race)
•    Great Britain II/Whitbread Heritage (Maxi ketch – took part in the first five races)
•    Rothmans 1989-90 (Maxi sloop)
•    Berge Viking 1981-82 (Swan 57)
•    Charles Jourdan 1989-90 (Maxi sloop)
•    Steinlager 2 1989-90 (Maxi Ketch)
•    Gauloises III 1981-82 (62’ Sloop) sailed by the French crew of Grand Louis/Japy-Hermes and Kriter IX
•    Traité de Rome 1977-78 and 1981-82 (51’ aluminium sloop)
•    Adventure/Dasher 1973-74 and 1977-78 (Nicholson 55’)
•    Tauranga 1973-74 (Swan 55’ yawl)
•    ASSA ABLOY 2001-02 (Volvo Ocean 60)
•    Fisher & Paykel 1989-90 (maxi-ketch)
•    L’Esprit d’Equipe 1985-86 (sloop)

Regatta Ambassadors
•    Lady Blake
•    Sir Chay Blyth CBE, BEM
•    Magnus Olsson
•    Skip Novak
•    Tracy Edwards MBE
•    Pierre Fehlmann

About the Volvo Ocean Race Legends Regatta and Reunion
•    The first ever official reunion of all who have sailed in the world’s premier ocean race since the inaugural race in 1973-74.
•    To be held in Alicante, Spain from 1-5 November 2011, the week between Alicante In-Port Race and the start of leg one of the Volvo Ocean Race.
•    A full racing schedule over two days.
•    Will conclude with a departure ceremony and parade of sail to escort the Volvo Ocean Race fleet to the start line for leg one.
•    A rich shoreside programme includes a regatta prizegiving, a gala dinner and a host of other social events.
•    Chat shows and forums after racing.
•    Legends entries open for public viewing.
•    148 boats have crossed the start line in the 37-year history of The Whitbread/Volvo Ocean Race.
•    1974 crew competed in the first 10 events.
•    The first 27,000 nautical-mile race first took place 38 years ago (as the Whitbread Round the World Race 1973-74), testing the crews against some  of the most ferocious elements that man can encounter.
•    The Volvo Ocean Race 2011-12 will be the 11th edition of the event.