The agreement, developed by Derry City Council with the support of Londonderry Port and Ocean Event Management, will form an integral part of the campaign to market the city’s culture, business and education offerings in a number of the cities on the Clipper 11-12 route.
Under the deal, Derry will also welcome the ten-strong fleet with a showcase festival at the end of the final transatlantic stage of the race in July 2012.
Derry’s yacht will be one of ten identical 68-foot ocean racing yachts, each of which is sponsored by a city, region or country to carry their name around the world. Joining the Derry entry will be Uniquely Singapore and the Chinese entry, Qingdao, for whom hosting the Clipper Race was a key step in securing the rights to host the sailing events of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games.
The Clipper 11-12 Round the World Yacht Race will start in August 2011. At 40,000 miles it is the world’s longest ocean race and will take in 15 ports on six continents.
