Wednesday, February 13, 2008

Ericsson 3 Launched: Volvo Ocean Race


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Photos OnEdition
Ericsson launch the first of their two challengers for the 2008-09 Volvo Ocean Race under the night sky at the World Trade Centre Plaza in Barcelona. The second generation Volvo Open 70, named Ericsson 3 and designed by Argentina’s Juan Kouyoumdjian, was officially christened before an audience of 1,500 guests.

Skippers Torben Grael, Anders Lewander and crew members from both boats were in attendance. The official launch was performed by Gordana Kovacevic, President of Ericsson Croatia, who cracked a bottle of champagne over the boat in the traditional way. The centre piece of a dazzling audio visual show was a giant inflatable orb suspended high above the plaza which carried dramatic footage from the 2005-06 event and an illuminated route map for the next race. The christening was timed to coincide with the Mobile World Congress, the world’s largest telecommunications trade show, also taking place in Barcelona this week.

The 2008-09 Volvo Ocean Race will be the 10th running of this ocean marathon. Starting from Alicante in Spain on 4 October 2008, it will for the first time, take in ports in Asia. Spanning some 39,000 nautical miles, stopping at around 11 ports and taking nine months to complete, the Volvo Ocean Race is the world’s premier yacht race for professional racing crews.