Sports | Sunday 17 May, 2015 12:07 am |

Strong winds in the Gulf Stream could mean a pounding for Azzam

True Blood heartthrob Ryan Kwanten to jump from Azzam at start


Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing (ADOR), the emirate’s crew contesting the Volvo Ocean Race (VOR), could have to deal with boat-breaking conditions during the opening 48 hours of the seventh leg of the race around the world, which starts on Sunday and sees the yachts race from Newport, Rhode Island in the USA to Lisbon, Portugal.

The Abu Dhabi Tourism & Culture Authority (TCA Abu Dhabi)-backed team’s skipper, British double Olympic silver medallist, Ian Walker, said the Abu Dhabi team expected to take a severe pounding from big seas thrown up by strong winds blowing against the flow of the warm waters of the Gulf Stream.

“Wind against current can be a nasty combination,” Walker said. “The two opposing forces drive up large steep waves which can act as take-off ramps for the yachts. Get the landing wrong and you can easily break the boat.”

ADOR takes a six-point lead into Leg 7 and UAE under-30 sailor Adil Khalid said the priority for the opening section of the 2,800 nautical-mile Atlantic crossing would be to get Azzam through the turbulent Gulf Stream waters unscathed.

“It’s a delicate balance between sailing fast without risking serious damage that could put you out of the leg,” Khalid explained. “We need to be cautious but we are also need to keep in touch with the rest of the fleet.”

Leg 7 - the shortest so far - sees the fleet return to Europe for the first time since leaving from Alicante, Spain last October and is expected to take between eight and ten days to complete – meaning little or no time to recover ground in the event of a breakdown.

ADOR navigator Simon Fisher said he was expecting a complex weather scenario for the Atlantic crossing, during which, as well as negotiating the Gulf Stream, ADOR will also have to find the fastest way around the Azores High – a persistent but unpredictable vast mid-ocean area of light winds blocking the way to Lisbon.

“The Azores High can change shape, move about, or even split in two,” Fisher said. “Timing is going to be key as the weather routing shows a wide range of very different options depending on how things play out.

“The truth is, we can only plan ahead so much and we will need to think on our feet a lot on this leg.”

Having been narrowly beaten to the USA on the previous leg from Brazil by their closest rivals Dongfeng Race Team, Fisher said he and Walker would likely try to stay close to the Chinese/French crew again to minimise the risk of losing points.

“The maths works in our favour if we can finish ahead or right behind them,” Fisher said. “However, when you are racing across oceans that’s not an easy thing to do.”

Australian film actor and heartthrob Ryan Kwanten will sail with the Azzam crew for the preliminary one-hour inshore section and will jump from the Abu Dhabi yacht’s stern at the Newport leaving marker.

Kwanten first found fame playing Vinnie Patterson in the Australian soap opera Home and Away but is best known in the role of Jason Stackhouse – a human turned ‘werepanther’ - in the smash hit HBO series True Blood.

A fitness fanatic and keen triathlete Kwanten said he could not wait to meet the ADOR sailors and to race aboard Azzam.

“I have huge respect for what the crew go through to compete in the Volvo Ocean Race,” Kwanten said. “I’m thrilled to get the chance to sail on Azzam as they set off for Lisbon and I will do my best to pull off a spectacular jump when my time comes.”

For ADOR bowman and helmsman Justin Slattery, the jump from the star might not be enough. “We are looking forward to Ryan sailing with us,” he said. “I hear he is quite an athlete - so maybe we will try to get him up the mast for super-selfie photo.”

Leg 7 of the Volvo Ocean Race from Newport, USA to Lisbon, Portugal is scheduled to start at 14:00 ET (22:00 UAE) and ADOR fans can watch all the action live online at volvooceanrace.com/live.




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ABOUT ABU DHABI TOURISM & CULTURE AUTHORITY

Abu Dhabi Tourism & Culture Authority (TCA Abu Dhabi) conserves and promotes the heritage and culture of Abu Dhabi emirate and leverages them in the development of a world-class, sustainable destination of distinction which enriches the lives of visitors and residents alike. The authority manages the emirate’s tourism sector and markets the destination internationally through a wide range of activities aimed at attracting visitors and investment. Its policies, plans and programmes relate to the preservation of heritage and culture, including protecting archaeological and historical sites and to developing museums, including the Louvre Abu Dhabi, Zayed National Museum and Guggenheim Abu Dhabi. TCA Abu Dhabi supports intellectual and artistic activities and cultural events to nurture a rich cultural environment and honour the emirate’s heritage. A key authority role is to create synergy in the destination’s development through close co-ordination with its wide-ranging stakeholder base.

For more information on the Abu Dhabi VOR Stopover please contact:
Nathan Wilson - ASDA’A Burson-Marsteller
d. +971 2 633 4133
e. nathan.wilson@bm.com

For more information on Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing please contact:
Justin Chisholm - Communications Officer, Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing
d. +44 7769 938 722
e. Jchisholm@teamador.com

For more information on Abu Dhabi Tourism & Culture Authority please contact:
Matt Ross
e. mross@tcaabudhabi.ae

Arabic enquiries
Medhat Juma - ASDA’A Burson-Marsteller
e. medhat.juma@bm.com


For media information on the Volvo Ocean Race, please contact:
Jon Bramley - Director, News and Media
Volvo Ocean Race HQ (Spain)
Tel +34 966 011 150
jon.bramley@volvooceanrace.com

Christina Gaither - Media Relations Manager
Tel +34 676 675 931
christina.gaither@volvooceanrace.com

Editors’ Notes
• The next edition of the Volvo Ocean Race will be the 12th running of the 40-year-old event, which started in 1973 as the Whitbread Round the World Race.
• The race started on October 4, 2014, day of the first In-Port Race in Alicante, Spain, and finish with one last In-Port Race on June 27, 2015 in Gothenburg, the Swedish home of Volvo.
• The 38,739-nautical mile route will also include stopovers in Cape Town (South Africa), Abu Dhabi (UAE), Sanya (China), Auckland (New Zealand), Itajaí (Brazil), Newport, Rhode Island (USA), Lisbon (Portugal) and Lorient (France). A 24-hour pit-stop in The Hague is scheduled between France and Sweden.
• The next two editions will be contested in a new high-performance boat, the Volvo Ocean 65, designed by Farr Yacht Design in the United States and built by a consortium of boatyards in the United Kingdom, France, Italy and Switzerland.
• The new 65-foot (19.8-metre) monohull racing yachts will be strictly One Design and delivered “ready to sail” for the next two editions of the Volvo Ocean Race. The boats incorporate the latest video, satellite and content production facilities to further enhance the Onboard Reporter programme that has been in place since 2008-09.
• Seven teams are taking part. The all-female Team SCA is the first all-women's team to compete in the race since 2001-02. Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing is once again skippered Britain's twice Olympic silver medallist Ian Walker. Dongfeng Race Team come from China and is backed by Dongfeng Commercial Vehicle. Team Brunel from the Netherlands is skippered by race veteran Bouwe Bekking. Team Alvimedica, the youth challenge will be led by All American Ocean Racing and carry a double Turkey/USA flag. A Spanish entry, MAPFRE is also taking part, skippered by Iker Martinez but Team Vestas Wind, who started the race in Alicante, ran aground on Leg 2, and is yet to rejoin the race.
• The previous Volvo Ocean Race started in October 2011 in Alicante and was won by Groupama sailing team, skippered by Frenchman Franck Cammas, in July 2012.