Volvo Ocean Race Melbourne Stopover Festival

The Volvo Ocean Race, considered to be the longest and toughest professional sporting event in the world, will return to the shores of Melbourne, Australia, this summer for the first time in over a decade. From 27 December 2017 to 2 January 2018, the Melbourne Race Village at Victoria Harbour, Docklands will welcome the best sailors from around the globe and play host to a week-long, free public festival. There will be on-and-off water entertainment and action for all ages, music performances and adventure activities, Melbourne's best food and bars for summer refreshments, as well as exclusive on-boat experiences aboard the incredible, high performance Volvo Ocean 65 yachts.

'To bring these outstanding sailors and their Volvo Ocean 65 yachts to Docklands provides Melburnians and visitors to the city alike with a great opportunity to be involved with the best-of-the-best in a precinct that provides access to outstanding culinary and coffee experiences", said Visit Victoria Chief Executive Officer, Peter Bingeman.

Held every three years and spanning eight months, the Volvo Ocean Race is one of the greatest challenges in professional sport. The 2017-2018 edition will take the teams 45,000 nautical miles around the world, across four oceans, touching six continents and 12 landmark Host Cities. Featuring almost three times as much Southern Ocean racing compared to previous editions, the Melbourne stopover will provide vital rest for competitors and an added incentive as double points are on offer for completing the demanding Cape Town to Melbourne race leg.

Australia's history with the Volvo Ocean Race goes all the way back to the first edition in 1973-74 and, in total, Australia has hosted the race seven times. The race first came to Melbourne in 2005-06 and now returns for a second time. 'We're delighted to be visiting Melbourne again – a vibrant city of sport and culture with a strong maritime heritage," said Volvo Ocean Race COO, Richard Mason.

The 2017-2018 Race sees many Australian participants competing, including; Phil Harmer (Team Vestas), Tim Johnson (Team Vestas), Stacey Jackson (Team Vestas), Sophie Ciszek (Team Mapfre), Andrew Cape (Team Brunel), Kyle Langford (Team Brunel), Jack Bouttell (Team DongFeng), Luke Molloy (Team AkzoNobel), Bryce Ruthenburg (Team AkzoNobel), Harley Spreadbury-Key (Team AkzoNobel) and David Witt (Team Sun Hung Kai/Scallywag).

Home to a number of the world's biggest sporting competitions, including The Australian Open, Melbourne Cup and F1 Grand Prix, The Volvo Ocean Race further establishes Melbourne as the nation's sporting capital and provides locals and visitors another exciting event to experience in the city this summer.

Volvo Ocean Race Melbourne Stopover Festival
27 December 2017 – 2 January 2018. The Festival site is open between 10am and 10pm daily
Victoria Harbour in Docklands
To see the incredible Volvo Ocean 65 fleet and the world's best sailing teams in action, and take in the fun and excitement of free entertainment and festivities on the Harbour.
The Festival is a free, all-ages event. For more information on the schedule of entertainment and activities, visit volvooceanracemelbourne.com