The route in the animation
The change to the first leg of the Volvo Ocean Race was announced with great fanfare a few months ago. It was to go from Alicante/Spain to Recife/Brazil. And from there directly, or again in a kind of part-time ghost voyage due to the risk of piracy, to Abu Dhabi. In any case, it was to be the longest of all the stages so far.
However, the Brazilian team that was previously considered a potential participant has now cancelled due to a lack of funding, meaning that its home port of Recife has also been cancelled. Brazil is now only on the programme for the second round with Itajai. Cape Town is back in the mix.
But the course of the leg is currently the least of the organisers' problems. With the Swedish team SCA Ocean Racing and Abu Dhabi with British helmsman Ian Walker, there are now only two confirmed starters. Race director Knud Frostad is quoted as saying that the organisers are in serious negotiations with other teams that are close to having their crews and budgets together. Given the lack of entries for other major events, it seems doubtful that there will be many more by the planned start in September 2014.
Lars Bolle
Chief Editor Digital
