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January 19, 2008
Kochi in India to host Volvo Ocean Race for first time
Photo: The fleet line up on the start line of the Volvo Ocean Race In Port race in Portsmouth. (© Oskar Kihlborg/ Volvo Ocean Race 2005-2006)
Portsmouth (England) - 18 January, 2008 - Kochi, in the Indian state of Kerala, is confirmed as the host of the second stopover of the Volvo Ocean Race in December 2008. The Indian stopover will come at the end of the second leg of the race from Cape Town, South Africa. Kochi will be the first of three new ports in Asia.
The booming shipping port on the Malabar Coast is now one of India's foremost tourist destinations and the race stopover is sure to bring thousands of additional visitors to both Kochi and the State of Kerala. The Kerala State Tourism Department envisages the event will bring significant visibility as well as economic benefit to the region.
Photo: Race 2005-2006 In Port race Melbourne.Port Phillip Bay. Volvo Open 70 movistar and Ericsson round a mark during the In Port race. (© Oskar Kihlborg/ Volvo Ocean Race 2005-2006)
Glenn Bourke, CEO of the Volvo Ocean Race commented: "It has always been part of our vision to take the race to different and wider audiences and we are delighted that Kochi has become part of that vision. India not only presents huge opportunities for the development of the event, but this coupled with the daunting challenges the competitors will face when racing their grand prix yachts in unfamiliar waters, will make the visit to India even more exciting for everyone involved. India has hundreds of millions of enthusiastic sports fans and we know they will enjoy this challenging race, with its passion, teamwork, adventure and excitement."
The 2008-09 event will be the 10th running of this ocean marathon. Starting from Alicante in Spain on 4 October 2008, it will for the first time, take in ports in Asia. Spanning some 39,000 nautical miles, stopping at around 11 ports and taking nine months to complete, the Volvo Ocean Race is the world's premier yacht race for professional racing crews. |GlobalGiants.com|
Edited & Posted by the Editor | 1:06 PM | Link to this Post
