Newport, R.I., will host the North American stopover of the 13th edition of the Volvo Ocean Race in May 2018 after the success of the sailing-mad coastal town’s hosting of the world’s leading offshore event earlier this year.
“We’re delighted to be able to confirm that Newport will be staging a second consecutive stopover in 2018,” race COO Tom Touber said in a statement.
“Everything worked brilliantly in Newport in May, thanks to the great work of Brad Read and his team, plus the backing of the governor, legislative leaders and state of Rhode Island agencies, and we were delighted with the large amount of spectators from our major fan base in the U.S. and elsewhere, who supported the stopover.
“Moreover, the Newport stopover was greatly valued by our stakeholders, who very much enjoyed visiting the area for its history, culture and, of course, the commercial opportunities it provided.”
The news that Newport will again host the event means that seven ports for the next edition of the 42-year-old race are already known.
The East Coast port joins Alicante (Spain), Cape Town (South Africa), Auckland (New Zealand), Cardiff (United Kingdom), Lisbon (Portugal) and Gothenburg (Sweden) on the list of confirmed stopovers for the 2017-18 edition.
The dates of the fleet’s Newport visit in 2018 are not yet known, but they will be announced when the full route is unveiled early next year.
