Turbine manufacturer enters Volvo race with 7th, final team

DANISH WIND ENERGY company Vestas Wind Systems A/S has entered a team in the Volvo Ocean Race, bringing the total number of teams to a final seven. Above, Team Alvimedica's vessel, an example of the Volvo Ocean 65 one-design boats to be raced by all seven teams, arrives in Newport in June. / COURTESY TEAM ALVIMEDICA
DANISH WIND ENERGY company Vestas Wind Systems A/S has entered a team in the Volvo Ocean Race, bringing the total number of teams to a final seven. Above, Team Alvimedica's vessel, an example of the Volvo Ocean 65 one-design boats to be raced by all seven teams, arrives in Newport in June. / COURTESY TEAM ALVIMEDICA

COPENHAGEN – Vestas Wind Systems A/S, a global wind energy company, will sponsor a boat in the Volvo Ocean Race 2014-15.
Chris Nicholson of Australia will skipper the boat for the race that starts on Oct. 4 in Alicante, Spain. The Volvo Ocean Race will be the fifth ocean race for Nicholson, a six-time world champion in buoy or in-port racing.
Two Danes, Nicolai Sehested and Peter Wibroe, are also part of the eight-man crew. The boat will be the the first Danish boat to enter the race, the company announced.
The international sailing race finishes in Gothenburg, Sweden, on June 27, 2015. Newport’s stopover from May 5-17 is the only North American visit in the entire race.
“It’s an honour to be skipper of Team Vestas Wind,” said Nicholson. “They have unmatched expertise in harnessing the power of wind and together we can use our knowledge to take on this challenge.”
Other teams in the race are Team SCA, Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing, Dongfeng Race Team, Team Brunel, and Team Alvimedica, which includes Bristol native Charlie Enright. A Spanish team is also in the race, but its title sponsor has not yet been named.
Volvo Ocean Race CEO Knut Frostad said Team Vestas Wind will fit in well with the other boats.
“Overall, I’m delighted that we will have seven teams on the start line, all racing the brand-new Volvo Ocean 65 one-design boats, a concept that was introduced only two years ago,” he said.
Vestas began manufacturing wind turbines in 1979. The boat sponsorship is part of a new corporate strategy dubbed “Profitable Growth for Vestas,” said Anders Runevad, group president and CEO at Vestas Wind Systems.
“Wind is our business and our passion,” he said. “The Volvo Ocean Race is the ideal platform for us to engage with our customers, showcase our technology and strengthen our brand in some of our most important markets.”
The Vestas boat will face its first test on water in mid-August.

No posts to display