2017–2018 Volvo Ocean Race

The 2017–18 Volvo Ocean Race was the 13th edition of the round-the-world Volvo Ocean Race. It started in Alicante, Spain,[1] and concluded in The Hague, Netherlands.[2][3] GAC Pindar provides logistic support for the race.[4] At the stopovers, teams had premium bases for better fan interaction.[5]

2017–18 Volvo Ocean Race

Edition	13th
Dates	14 October 2017 – 30 June 2018
Competitors	7
Yachts	Volvo Ocean 65
Results
Winner	Dongfeng Race Team
← 2014–15 2020–21 →

Volvo made a number of changes to this edition. Sailors were able to provide social media updates,[6][7] new male/female ratios were introduced,[8] Onboard Reporters rotated between teams, a new scoring system was used,[9] the yachts were upgraded with Hydro generators for back-up power[10] and all teams sailed the 2017 Fastnet Race.[11]

During Leg 7 of the race, John Fisher, 47, a British citizen who lived in Adelaide, was swept overboard from Sun Hung Kai/Scallywag and lost at sea 1400 miles west of Cape Horn.[12]

Yachts

Main article: Volvo Ocean 65

For the second edition running, the race was one-design, racing the Volvo Ocean 65.[13] The VO65 was designed by Farr Yacht Design to be a cheaper and safer alternative to the ageing and expensive Volvo Open 70.[14]

All Volvo 65's have undergone repairs and refits by The Boatyard. This ensured that all the yachts are the same.[15] The estimated cost of the refit was 1 million euros.[16]

Participants

Despite an eighth boat being produced for this edition, only seven teams participated, as in the previous edition:[17]

Team	Skipper
Team AkzoNobel	Simeon Tienpont^1
Dongfeng Race Team	Charles Caudrelier
MAPFRE	Xabi Fernández
Vestas 11th Hour Racing	Charlie Enright
Team Sun Hung Kai/Scallywag	David Witt
Turn the Tide on Plastic	Dee Caffari
Team Brunel	Bouwe Bekking

• ^1 — Skipper Simeon Tienpont was released from Team AkzoNobel on 13 October, one day before the first in-port race, and replaced by Brad Jackson.[18] Two hours before the start of leg 1, Tienpont was re-instated by an arbitration panel.[19]

Route

The full route for this edition was announced in June 2016, with the announcement of the addition of Melbourne in January 2017.[20][21]

This edition of the race included "Leg 0", a set of 4 offshore races to help generate interest. They included the 2017 Round the Island Race, and the 2017 Fastnet Race.

Event	Start date	Finish date	Start	Finish	Distance
In-Port Race	14 October 2017		Alicante
Leg 1[1]	22 October 2017	28 October	Alicante	Lisbon	1,650 nm
In-Port Race	3 November 2017		Lisbon
Leg 2	5 November 2017	24 November	Lisbon	Cape Town	7,000 nm
In-Port Race	8 December 2017		Cape Town
Leg 3	10 December 2017	27 December	Cape Town	Melbourne	6,500 nm
Leg 4	2 January 2018	19 January	Melbourne	Hong Kong	6,000 nm
In-Port Race	27 & 28 January 2018		Hong Kong
Leg 5 (non-scoring)	1 February 2018		Hong Kong	Guangzhou	100 nm
In-Port Race	3 February 2018		Guangzhou
Leg 5 (non-scoring)	5 February 2018		Guangzhou	Hong Kong	100 nm
Leg 6	7 February 2018	27 February 2018	Hong Kong	Auckland	5,600 nm
In-Port Race	10 March 2018		Auckland
Leg 7	18 March 2018	3 April 2018	Auckland	Itajaí	7,500 nm
In-Port Race	20 April 2018		Itajaí
Leg 8	22 April 2018	8 May 2018	Itajaí	Newport	5,500 nm
In-Port Race	19 May 2018		Newport
Leg 9	20 May 2018	29 May 2018	Newport	Cardiff	3,300 nm
In-Port Race	8 June 2018		Cardiff
Leg 10	10 June 2018	14 June 2018	Cardiff	Gothenburg	1,230 nm
In-Port Race	17 June 2018		Gothenburg
Leg 11[3]	21 June 2018	24 June 2018	Gothenburg	The Hague	520 nm
In-Port Race	30 June 2018		The Hague

Notes (134 sailing days for race winners and 10 In-port racing days):

Results

As opposed to the previous edition, scoring was based on a high-points system, with the winner of every leg scoring one bonus point (7+1 bonus point for a win, 6 for second, 5 for third, etc.). The two Southern Ocean legs – from Cape Town to Melbourne, and Auckland to Itajaí, plus the North Atlantic leg near the end of the race, Newport to Cardiff – all scored double points. There was a bonus point for the first team to round Cape Horn in a nod to the historic significance of this turning point in the race. A further bonus point was awarded for the team with the best total elapsed time overall in the race. The In-Port Series didn't count in the overall points but remained the tiebreaker should teams be tied on points at the finish in The Hague.[22]

Overall standings

	Leg 1	Leg 2	Leg 3	Leg 4	Leg 5	Leg 6	Leg 7	Leg 8	Leg 9	Leg 10	Leg 11	Bonus	Total
Dongfeng	5	6	12	6	1	4	12	4	10	4	7	2 ^3	73
MAPFRE	6	7	14	4	1	5	6	7	6	6	5	3	70
Team Brunel	2	4	8	3	1	2	14	6	14	7	4	4 ^4	69
AkzoNobel	4	3	2	5	1	7	10	3	12	5	6	1	59
Vestas 11th Hour	7	5	10	Ret ^2	DNS	DNS	Ret	5	8	2	1	1	39
Turn the Tide on Plastic	1	1	4	2	1	3	8	2	4	3	3	-	32
Sun Hung Kai/Scallywag	3	2	6	7	1	6	Ret	1	2	1	2	1	32
Source:[23]

• ^2 — Retired from leg after damage sustained from collision with commercial fishing vessel approximately 30 miles from the finish in Hong Kong. The collision resulted in the loss of the fishing vessel and the fatality of one of the crew members several hours later in a local hospital. Vestas 11th Hour Racing issued a Mayday distress call on behalf of the other vessel and undertook a search and rescue mission immediately following the incident.[24]
• ^3 — 1 point for leg win, 1 point for elapsed time.
• ^4 — 3 points for leg win, 1 point for first around Cape Horn.

In-port series

	Ali	Lis	CT	HK	Gzu	Auc	Ita	NP	Car	Got	DH	Total
MAPFRE	7	6	6	6	7	5	7	6	6	5	3	64
Dongfeng	6	5	7	7	2	7	5	3	7	1	6	56
Team Brunel	4	7	2	4	6	3	3	7	5	2	7	50
AkzoNobel	2	4	5	5	5	6	6	2	4	6	5	50
Vestas 11th Hour	5	3	4	DNS	DNS	4	2	5	3	7	2	35
Turn the Tide on Plastic	1	1	3	2	3	1	4	1	1	4	4	25
Sun Hung Kai/Scallywag	3	2	1	3	4	2	DNS	4	2	3	1	25
Source:[25]

References

1. "Edição de 2017 da Volvo Ocean Race arranca em Alicante". SAPO Desporto (in Portuguese). 18 May 2015. Retrieved 6 August 2015.
2. Haynes, Reagan (19 May 2015). "Newport seeks to secure another Volvo Ocean Race stopover". Trade Only Today. Retrieved 6 August 2015.
3. (in Dutch) NOS.nl (2016): Den Haag wordt in 2018 Champs-Elysees van Volvo Ocean Race
4. "GAC Pindar returns as official logistics provider for Volvo Ocean Race". Ajot.Com. Retrieved 2017-06-06.
5. "Premium team bases to enhance fan 'pit lane' experience - Volvo Ocean Race 2017-18". Volvooceanrace.com. 2016-10-13. Retrieved 2017-06-06.
6. "Rule change allows sailors to provide social media updates from the oceans | Volvo Ocean Race". YouTube. 2016-10-11. Retrieved 2017-06-06.
7. "Sailors can use social media onboard - Volvo Ocean Race 2017-18". Volvooceanrace.com. 2016-10-11. Retrieved 2017-06-06.
8. "Race changes rules to attract world's best female sailors - Volvo Ocean Race 2017-18". Volvooceanrace.com. 2016-10-10. Retrieved 2017-06-06.
9. "New scoring system to open up fleet - Volvo Ocean Race 2017-18". Volvooceanrace.com. 2016-10-18. Retrieved 2017-06-06.
10. "Upgraded boats to use hydropower - Volvo Ocean Race 2017-18". Volvooceanrace.com. 2016-10-19. Retrieved 2017-06-06.
11. "Fastnet Race in 2017-18 qualifying schedule - Volvo Ocean Race 2017-18". Volvooceanrace.com. 2016-10-17. Retrieved 2017-06-06.
12. Mather, Victor (2018-03-27). "Sailor in Round-the-World Race Is 'Lost at Sea'". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2018-03-31.
13. Bramley, Jon (16 May 2015). "A vision for the future". Volvo Ocean Race. Retrieved 6 August 2015.
14. "Design № 757 - Volvo Ocean 65". Farr Yacht Design. Retrieved 6 August 2015.
15. "The Boatyard - Volvo Ocean Race 2017-18". Volvooceanrace.com. Retrieved 2017-06-06.
16. "Volvo Ocean 65s to feature new hydropower units as part of one million euro refit per boat". Volvo Ocean Race. 2016-10-19. Retrieved 2017-06-06.
17. "Meet the teams – Volvo Ocean Race". volvooceanrace.com.
18. "A message from our sailing and shore teams". Team AkzoNobel. 15 October 2017. Archived from the original on 2017-10-16. Retrieved 2017-10-15.
19. http://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/2017/10/22/volvo-ocean-race-courts-settle-akzonobel-nightmare/
20. Race, Volvo Ocean. "'Returning to our roots'".
21. "Revised Course for Volvo Ocean Race 2017-18". sailingscuttlebutt.com. 26 January 2017.
22. "How to win". volvooceanrace.com.
23. Scoreboard
24. "Fatality Confirmed of Fishing Vessel Crew Member"
25. Scoreboard

External links

• Official website