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Thursday June 17, 2010
Team GAC Pindar enter Round the Island Race
Team GAC Pindar's Extreme 40, will join a total of 1,754 entries in this weekend's J.P.Morgan Asset Management Round the Island Race, which begins in Cowes, UK on Saturday, June 19.
The prestigious, annual, 50 nautical mile event around the Isle of Wight, in the UK, has been contested since 1931 and is one of the most popular fixtures on the sailing calendar. The race attracts some of the world's leading sailors, including round-the-world skippers and Olympic medallists, who compete alongside first-time racers.
The Team GAC Pindar entry, which is new to the Extreme Sailing Series this year, will be skippered by Australian all-round yachtsman and experienced Extreme 40 sailor, Nick Moloney. Nick will be joined by two fellow Team GAC Pindar crew, Britons Andy Walsh and Olly Smith plus experienced guest sailors Julian Metherell, Mark Denton and John Manzoni.
Approximately 16,000 sailors are expected to join the start line of JPMorgan Asset Management Round the Island Race on Saturday, making it not only one of the largest yacht races in the world, but the fourth largest participation sporting event in the UK, after the London Marathon and the Great North and South Runs.
The race attracts entries from all over the UK and Europe and some as far as the United States and Middle East. Other entrants in the Extreme 40 class include Ecover Sailing Team plus two Oman Sail entries - The Wave Muscat and Oman Sail Masirah.
Team GAC Pindar skipper, Nick Moloney, who boasts a rich and successful sailing career, including two America's Cup campaigns and 12 individual World Sailing Speed Records, has competed in the race three times before. Speaking from Cowes, he commented: "The Round the Island Race is a fantastic event, which brings together some great boats and sailors of all abilities. It's a really challenging race course too, which requires many different points of sail, as well as a number of sail changes and manoeuvres to effectively complete the 'full circle'. We're looking forward to some competitive racing with the other Extreme 40's, but primarily it will be a great opportunity to get some valuable training ahead of the next Extreme Sailing Series round, in Cowes, next month."
The race begins at 5am, from the famous Royal Yacht Squadron line in Cowes, after which the fleet will race westabout to The Needles, around St Catherine's Point and Bembridge Ledge buoy and back into the Solent, to the finish line in Cowes.
Whilst much of the fleet will take many hours to complete the race, the overall course record stands at 3hrs 53mins 05secs, set by Mike Slade on ICAP Leopard in 2008. ICAP Leopard will be looking to beat their record on Saturday, along with Francis Joyon and his big red Trimaran Idec II, who will also return, in a bid to beat their multihull record of 3hrs 08mins 29secs, set in 2001.
To follow the action live, via the event race tracker, please visit: www.roundtheisland.org.uk
Media contact
For more information about Team GAC Pindar, including high res images, please contact:
Jo Gawith/ Kate Brewer - Performance PR
T: +44 (0)20 8541 3434
M: +44 (0)7968 723054 / M: +44 (0)7500 832532
E: jo@performancepr.com / kate@performancepr.com
Picture credit: Mark Lloyd
About Team GAC Pindar
Team GAC Pindar is a unique partnership between independent sailing company Team Pindar and global shipping, logistics and marine services provider GAC Group.
Jointly, the two leading brands aim to leverage the synergies from their combined strengths and networks to build brand awareness and generate business opportunities in the exciting sailing arena.
Team Pindar is one of the world's leading independent sailing teams. Since the company's first ever sports sponsorship of The North Sea Yacht Race in 1980, Pindar has become one of the most established names in sailing. Best known for its sponsorship of Emma Sanderson (née Richards) in the 2002-03 Around Alone Race, Pindar has supported sailing campaigns across every level, ranging from grass roots and local community projects through to match racing and global offshore events at the very pinnacle of the sport.
GAC's portfolio of shipping, logistics, marine and related services are constantly being refined and integrated to serve the customers' increasing need for competitive solutions. GAC Logistics serves the worldwide needs of manufacturers, distributors and retailers in diverse sectors. It delivers a complete range of supply chain and logistics solutions.
No stranger to the specialist field of sports logistics, GAC has an established track record in combining speed and precision to deliver time-definite solutions to sporting events from sailing, motorcar and motorbike races to regional multi-sports games.
Emphasising trust, reliability and a strong human touch, GAC has been building its reputation in its chosen markets since 1956. headquartered in Dubai, GAC employs over 9,000 people in more than 300 offices worldwide.
Team GAC Pindar is currently competing in the 2010 Extreme Sailing Series Europe, skippered by Nick Moloney and the ISAF World Match Racing Tour, skippered by former Double ISAF World Match Racing Champion, Ian Williams.
www.gac.com
www.teampindar.com
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