A main trophy, a youth trophy
As we already knew, there will be two classes of boats on this round the world race. From IMOCA for the overall title and VO65 for the "Youth Challenge Trophy".
In this last category, the majority of the 10 crew members on board must be under 30 years old and three of the sailors must be under 26 years old.
IMOCA foils and one-design VO65s
We already knew that, the Volvo Ocean Race is now open to IMOCA boats . But not all of them, since the general rules stipulate that only foiling IMOCA boats launched after 2010 can participate. They will also have to be equipped with a standard wing mast. The number of sails and foils is already limited in order to control team expenses.
"In a race with stopovers, due to timing constraints, it is important to keep a certain homogeneity in the fleet to avoid big gaps at the finish. This is why we have established a rule concerning the date of launch. Moreover, thanks to this framework, all the teams will have a chance to perform explains Antoine Mermod.
Between the existing boats and those under construction, 16 to 18 boats are eligible for the crewed round-the-world race. The president of the Euro class, Antoine Mermod euros, expects to gather a fleet of 10 to 15 boats.
A schedule to be defined
The race will take place between 2021 and 2022 and we will still have to wait to know the dates of the different stages and the places of stopovers. However, we do know the opening date for registrations, set for December 11, 2018.
The "inaugural" In-Port regatta and the start of the race will be held in Alicante, Spain, in the late fall of 2021. The race will include a maximum of 9 legs and up to 8 intermediate stops can be scheduled.
Some territories are already defined: South America, Australia/New Zealand, Asia, the United States and Europe, where the race will end in early summer 2022.
Qualification will be done through crewed races during 2021. Finally, the rules stipulate that the participants will not be allowed to train together between November 1, 2020 and April 30, 2021, which corresponds roughly to the period of the Vendée Globe, to ensure, according to the organization, the greatest fairness at the start of Alicante in the fall of 2021.
A compromise for the crew
For the In-Port regattas and for the offshore legs, the crew will be composed of 5 people, including at least one woman. If the crew is composed of 4 women, then it will be possible to embark 6.
The decision was not unanimous, as the Volvo Ocean Race sailors preferred to have more people on board, while the IMOCA skippers wanted the opposite, as Antoine Mermod explains: "The sailors from the Volvo Ocean Race wanted to have a larger crew, while those from the IMOCA would have liked to have fewer people on board. We think we've found a happy medium."
In addition to the crew, each boat will have a mediaman on board, to make images never seen before on an IMOCA round the world race.
Concerning safety, crews will have to follow a specific training.
