Photos: L Oskar Kihlborg © 2006 Volvo Ocean Race R Oskar Kihlborg © 2006 Volvo Ocean Race

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Tue, 20 Mar 2007 10:00:00 UTC

Volvo Ocean Race has taken up the challenge of the new series of Extreme 40 events to be sailed across Europe this summer and has confirmed an entry in the iShares Cup.

“We are delighted to be continuing our partnership with the boat’s manufacturer, TornadoSport,” said Volvo Ocean Race Chief Executive Officer, Glenn Bourke. “The Extreme 40 Series this summer and next will be an exciting curtainraiser to next year’s 2008-09 Volvo Ocean Race.”

The class was formed as the Volvo Extreme 40 to provide additional racing interest around the stopovers of the last Volvo Ocean Race and is now known as the Extreme 40.

The Extreme 40 events will take place in Germany, France, the Netherlands and the UK, with the first event scheduled for Starnberg Lake, Munich, from 25-27 May.

TornadoSport, the class manufacturer of this speedy 40 ft sport cataraman, expect to have seven boats in the water for the first event, according to its Dutch-based Chief Operating Officer Daniel Koene. In addition to the Volvo Ocean Race entry, TornadoSport have also been contracted to build an additional boat sponsored by the Dutch marine equipment maker Holmatro.

iShares, the world’s leader in Exchange Traded Funds, was confirmed as Title Sponsor in January this year following the exciting in-port grand prix series of races held during the 2005-06 Volvo Ocean Race.

The four iShares Cup events will form the core of the European season and will be complemented by some other one-off events that might take the fleet to Italy, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland.

The cup will be raced over a three-day format with one set-up day and one pre-regatta warm-up day. Each race day will include a session of ‘informal’ racing for the teams to take their VIP and media guests out racing, and then a series of three to five windward/leeward courses raced daily that count towards the cup.

Extreme 40 racing caught the eye during the Volvo Ocean Race port stopovers and TornadoSport Chief Executive Officer Herbert Dercksen is looking forward to the forthcoming summer series.

“These cataramans are a fantastic challenge but also great fun for the sailors to race, “ he said. “The thrill for spectators is that they race so fast and so close to the shore.”

Two times Olympic Silver medallist Randy Smyth from America won the inaugural series, ahead of Team Basilica, after 70 races in five different countries during the Volvo Ocean Race.

The Extreme 40, designed by French Olympic gold medallist sailor Yves Loday, was created to fill a gap in grand prix sailboat racing.

The boats are normally sailed by four professional crew with a fifth VIP spot available while racing. The boats can reach speeds up to 35 knots in flat water in around 25 knots of wind. The lightweight carbon-fibre cataraman can be easily packed into a standard 40-ft container which makes it easy to transport between racing venues.

Find out more about the 2007 Extreme 40 racing series.

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