News

North Sails for VO65s in The Ocean Race

Published on April 7th, 2020

The one-design VO65 fleet will race its third edition in the 2021-22 edition of The Ocean Race with an identical sail inventory by North Sails. Each boat will have seven sails using 3Di technology, which itself was born out of a collaboration between North Sails and Ocean Race teams.

“Over the past two editions of the Race, our arrangement with North Sails to equip the VO65 fleet has contributed to the closest racing in the long history of the event,” said Phil Lawrence, the Race Director for The Ocean Race. “This competitiveness comes when the teams know they have sails they can push to the absolute limit, without compromising safety, durability or performance.

“We consulted with our VO65 teams who made clear their preference to again have a single-supplier for sails as in the past two races, and we’re very happy to be able to continue our relationship with North Sails into the next edition of The Ocean Race.”

The relationship between North Sails and The Ocean Race goes back decades, and many within North Sails have sailed with various teams and won the race, while numerous designers and sailmakers have supported the technical side of programs in their quest to finish first around the world.

“The Ocean Race is one of the most prestigious events in our sport and is the ultimate proving ground for the durability of 3Di,” remarked North Sails President Ken Read. “By introducing drones into the last event we have gotten to see how much abuse our sails can withstand and look forward to working with the new race organisers and the teams in their upcoming adventure.”

New for the 2021-22 edition will be the high-performance, foiling, IMOCA 60 class in which the boats and equipment must fit within a design rule with no restrictions on manufacture.

Event details – Route – Teams – Facebook

The Ocean Race 2021-22 (formerly The Volvo Ocean Race) will be raced in two classes of boats: the high-performance, foiling, IMOCA 60 class and the one-design VO65 class which has been used for the last two editions of the race. Entries in the IMOCA 60 class will compete for The Ocean Race trophy, while those racing the VO65s will chase the Ocean Challenge Trophy.

The next edition of The Ocean Race is scheduled to start from Alicante, Spain in October 2021, with stops in Cabo Verde; Cape Town, South Africa; Shenzhen, China; Auckland, New Zealand; Itajaí, Brazil; Newport, Rhode Island; Aarhus, Denmark; The Hague in The Netherlands; before the Grand Finale in Genoa, Italy.

Ten Stopovers for 14th Edition:
• Alicante, Spain: This historic Mediterranean port will host the start for the fifth consecutive edition in the autumn of 2021.

• Cabo Verde: More accustomed to having offshore teams sail by, or stop for repair, this archipelago of ten volcanic islands in the central Atlantic Ocean will become just the second African venue the race has ever visited and the first West African nation to host the event. Details.

• Cape Town, South Africa: Located on the shore of Table Bay, Cape Town, as the oldest urban area in South Africa, was developed by the United East India Company (VOC) as a supply station for Dutch ships sailing to East Africa, India, and the Far East. Located at latitude 33.55° S, it’s approximately the same as Sydney and Buenos Aires and equivalent to Casablanca and Los Angeles in the northern hemisphere. Details.

• Shenzhen, China: Located in the southeast, the city is a modern metropolis that links Hong Kong to China’s mainland. It’s known for its shopping destinations and features contemporary buildings, such as the 600m-tall skyscraper Ping An International Finance Centre, and a number of amusement parks. The city is a leading global technology hub and was one of the fastest-growing cities in the world in the 1990s and the 2000s. Details.

• Auckland, New Zealand: European, Polynesian, Asian, and strong Maori heritages give Auckland its distinctive culture. Located in the North Island of New Zealand, it is the most populous urban area in the country with an urban population of around 1,570,100. Details.

• Itajaí, Brazil: To the south of Rio de Janeiro, Itajaí was founded in the mid-19th century by German and Italian colonists, and is now the commercial centre and Atlantic port for an agricultural region drained by the Itajaí River and its tributaries. Details.

• Newport, USA: Located on Aquidneck Island, Newport is 74 miles south of Boston and 180 miles northeast of New York City. It is known as a New England summer resort and is famous for its historic mansions and its rich sailing history. It was the location of every challenge to the America’s Cup between 1930 and 1983. It is also the home of Naval Station Newport, which houses the United States Naval War College, the Naval Undersea Warfare Center, and an important Navy training center. This is the third consecutive edition of the race to stop in Newport. Details.

• Aarhus, Denmark: The course comes to the east coast of the Jutland peninsula during the spring of 2022, following a popular ‘Fly-By’ of the city during the final leg of the 2017-18 edition of the Race. Details.

• The Hague, Netherlands: This city along the North Sea coast will welcome the race for a third consecutive time, first coming as a ‘pitstop’ on the final leg of the 2014-15 edition and as the final finish port for the 2017-18 race. Details.

• Genoa, Italy: As the birthplace of Christopher Columbus, this first-time race host is Italy’s largest sea port yet remains full of grandeur as the gateway to the Riviera while offering weighty architectural heritage. Details.