Galway West Fine Gael TD Sean Kyne has called on Minister for Transport, Tourism, and Sport Leo Varadkar to support a bid for Galway to host the Volvo Ocean Race in 2014/15.
“Few other events showcase Ireland, and in this case Galway, in as positive a light to such a large global audience as the Volvo Ocean Race,” he said. “The boost to the local economy, local businesses, and hence, employment, cannot be understated, and was demonstrated to be in the region of €55.8m at the time of the 2009 stopover. This was based on the 650,000 visitors who travelled to Galway on that occasion.
“I understand that an economic impact study on the 2012 finale event is underway and I’m confident that with over 900,000 visitors, the economic impact of this summer’s Volvo Ocean Race will be substantially more.”
Deputy Kyne said he was concerned to learn that Let’s Do It Global is unable to make a bid due to financial uncertainty.
