Two of the biggest racing events of the year will come face-to-face this weekend as the Green Dragon boat, Ireland’s entry for the 2008-2009 Volvo Ocean Race, docks in Galway city for four days during the Galway Races.
No one knows competition like those who live for a good race, and aiming to steal a little of the limelight from this week’s Galway Races is the Green Dragon, Ireland’s entry for the 2008-2009 Volvo Ocean Race, which is due to stop in to Galway city next spring, along with eight other 70-footers during the famous around-the-world yacht race.
Arriving at the city docks yesterday, the boat and its crew will remain in the city until Thursday morning when they will head to Cork and then out to sea for a 2,000-mile qualifying passage.
The boat and its team, whose unique name comes from its sponsorship by a Chinese business consortium, are also spending their time trying to find one Chinese member to join them on the race. The Green Dragon’s skipper, Ian Walker, said the team would like to see applicants from Chinese sailors who are competing in this summer’s Olympics in China, as well as former members of the China Team AC syndicate. Up to five potential Chinese crewmembers will return to Ireland with the team in August for intense training before the final crewmember will be chosen.
The Volvo Ocean Race begins on October 11 from Alicante, Spain, and the teams are expected to begin arriving in Galway sometime in late-May/early-June next year. In total, the race will journey more than 39,000 nautical miles including Africa, the Middle East, India, Southeast Asia, China, South America, North America, and then on to Galway before its finish in the Baltic.
The 10th running of the Volvo Ocean Race is expected to generate up to €43 million for the local economy in Galway and is expected to be watched by nearly 1.8 billion television viewers between May 22 and June 6.
