Velux 5 Oceans opener

In port race off Bilbao to take place tomorrow for the seven Open 60s

Tomorrow Saturday October 14 will see the skippers of the Velux 5 Oceans battling against each other in a special inshore regatta off the coast of Bilbao, the Basque Country. With just over a week to go before these intrepid heroes set off on their solo voyage around the world, the people of Bilbao and the surrounding region will get to see the power and speed of the high performance Open 60s up close. Kicking off at 13:00 local time, the yachts will race with full crews around a course set off the cliffs of Bizkaia in the “Bay of Biscay Regatta” hosted by the City of Bilbao and the Club Maritimo Del Abra.

The in-port race will see all of the seven Open 60 yachts participating against each other, as the skippers get their first chance to assess the competition out on the infamous waters of the Bay of Biscay. Graham Dalton, with his new Open 50 yacht, will continue to make repairs following his late arrival in Bilbao after a difficult transatlantic crossing. The in-port race has been organised as a friendly competition and will not count towards the overall classification in the Velux 5 Oceans. However, few things are taken lightly but the highly competitive teams, and the Basque spectators are looking forward to a well fought battle.

The Open 60 fleet in the Velux 5 Oceans boasts a host of nationalities, ranging from New Zealand and Japan, through Europe and over to America. The inshore race will see local hero Unai Basurko ( Pakea), competing in a newly-built yacht, taking on the best from Britain in Alex Thomson ( Hugo Boss) and Mike Golding ( Ecover), as well as defending champion Bernard Stamm from Switzerland ( Cheminées Poujoulat Landolt) and the challenger from the East, Kojiro Shiraishi ( Spirit of Yukoh). This edition of the Velux 5 Oceans also sees sailing legend Sir Robin Knox-Johnston attempting to retain his title as the last British person to win a round the world race in his boat Saga Insurance. Tim Troy, the challenger from America, completes the line up in what many see as the first taste of action in this classic event.

Following a quick press conference and departure ceremony from the newly opened race village in the Puerto Deportivo in Gexto, the boats will head towards the open sea and a short course that will take the fleet along the popular cliff fronts along the Basque coast. The starting gun is set for 13:00, and the race is expected to last around two hours, with the boats hosting friends, families, guests and invited media. The competitors will then return to the race village for the evening prize giving which features a special VIP guest.