Volvo Race looks likely to return to city in 2012

By Regina HennellyHopes that the Volvo Ocean Race may be set for a return visit to Galway are running high following a visit by the organisers of the competition to the city harbour last week, the Galway City Tribune can exclusively reveal. It is understood organisers were so impressed by Galway’s hosting of the stopover last June that they now regard the city as one of the frontrunners in the competition to host the event when it kicks off again in three years’ time. Of the 82 cities who applied to be considered for a stopover in 2012, only 20 serious candidates remain. A dozen of those are in Europe – including Galway – and a final decision on the host cities will be made early next year. The major competitor which may have threatened Galway’s chances was Belfast, which had hoped to host a stopover as part of its celebrations to mark 100 years since the construction and demise of theTitanic. It is understood, however, that Northern Ireland is no longer in the running and Galway is the only port on this island being considered at this point.As part of their visit to the city last week, the team from Volvo attended a meeting with management at Galway Harbour to discuss planned developments at the Docks and to assess the infrastructure available here for a race that promises to be bigger and better.Speaking to the Galway City Tribune, Harbour Master, Brian Sheridan said the competition to host a stopover was similar to “a city bidding for the Olympics” this time around as the Race now enjoyed such a high profile, but he said he would be optimistic for Galway’s changes at this point.“We held a very fruitful meeting last week and competition is undoubtedly stiff, but we are in a very good position and we are very optimistic,” he said.The major stumbling block is the requirement by Volvo that Ireland must enter a boat in the race if Galway is to host a stopover – an expensive stipulation, but plans and negotiations are already underway to make that happen. The Irish entry in the last Race – the Green Dragon – was built at a cost of €4million and its involvement in the nine-month-long race ran to a total cost well in excess of that.While the Dragon could be entered again in the next race, improvements in technology and changes in the rules could require a new vessel to be sourced.The 70ft Green Dragon was earlier this week removed from outside the Aquarium in Salthill and brought into storage at the Docks so that an assessment could be made of whether it could be sufficiently upgraded for 2012.One member of the conglomerate which owns the Green Dragon, local businessman John Killeen, confirmed yesterday that a serious effort was being made to secure foreign sponsorship to help finance an entry in the next Race. “You have to have a lot of finance to run a boat around the world, but we are actively working on getting some major international sponsors on board and we are confident,” he said.Galway’s hosting of the Ocean Race last June generated a massive €45million for the local economy.