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Volvo Ocean Race’s Asian debut in Kochi

KOCHI: The clouds of uncertainty have moved away and Kochi has been confirmed as a stopover for the famed Volvo Ocean Race, virtually the World championship of ocean racing.

The Volvo Ocean Race, which will make its Asian debut when it enters Kochi in early December, is a 39,000-nautical mile round the world event. It begins at Alicante in Spain in October and ends in St. Petersburg, Russia, nearly 10 months later. The Kochi Stopover Port Agreement was signed on Friday at the Abad Plaza here by the event’s Race Director Andy Hindley, Cochin Port Trust Chairman, N. Ramachandran, and Kerala Tourism Development Corporation Managing Director, K.G. Mohananlal, in the presence of the Kerala Home and Tourism Minister, Kodiyeri Balakrishnan.

“You will see many Olympians in the race, a few Olympic and World champions too,” Hindley said. “The competitors and sponsors are excited about coming to India.”

When the Volvo Race organisers first expressed interest about coming to Kochi 18 months ago, not many were sure if the city would be able to host such a major sporting event. “And after a few thousand e-mails and many meetings, we now have the race here,” the Kerala Tourism Secretary, V. Venu, who played a major part in the negotiations with the race organisers, said.

After the Alicante start, the race moves to Cape Town, has a 10-day halt at Kochi, and sails to Singapore, Qingdao (China), Rio de Janeiro, Boston, Galway, Goteborg and Stockholm before the St. Petersburg finish.

The race is considered as one of the most demanding sporting events in the world.

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