V&A Waterfront ready to welcome return of iconic Ocean Race to Cape Town

Ocean Race

The V&A Waterfront will proudly be hosting the Ocean Race in Cape Town. Taking place between the 8th and 26th of February 2023, the 60 000km Ocean Race is a world-class platform to showcase the South African Maritime and Ocean sectors to both South African and international audiences.

The race comprises, a fleet of five fully crewed IMOCA 60s. The five IMOCA yachts with some of the best offshore sailors from around the world left Cabo Verde on Wednesday afternoon on their two-week race to the Mother City. The first yachts are expected to arrive in Cape Town from the on 9th of February.

On the 26th of February, the yachts will set sail from Cape Town on the longest leg of the race in its history, a 12 750 nautical mile, 34-day marathon to Itajaí, Brazil. This will take the crews down to the Roaring Forties and Furious Fifties of the Southern Ocean. Antarctica will be to the right and the fleet will pass all three great southern Capes, the Cape of Good Hope, Cape Leeuwin and Cape Horn nonstop. From Brazil the race takes the crews to Newport, Rhode Island (USA), then Aarhus, Denmark, a fly-by via Kiel, in Germany, then a stopover in The Hague, the Netherlands, before a final stretch to Genova, Italy for a Mediterranean grand finale at the end of June 2023.

The 2022–23 race marks the 12th consecutive time that Cape Town has hosted a stopover for the Ocean Race. No other stopover city is as closely associated with The Ocean Race, in its many formats as Cape Town, which has so far welcomed the around-the-world fleet – making it the most visited – and most anticipated – stopover in the event’s history.

V&A Waterfront CEO, David Green said that the Ocean Race’s presence at the Waterfront has been a catalyst for the evolution around the potential of what the oceans economy can look like for the Western Cape, and South Africa.

Green said: “Because of our extraordinary location, at the gateway to the Southern Oceans, the ocean is at the heart of the V&A Waterfront’s vision, and we have adopted the mutually reinforcing goals of growing the opportunities relating to the ocean economy, including creating jobs, while developing and exercising best-practice ocean stewardship.”

Fun for the whole family

The popular event will see a roll-out of fun activities, educational programmes and projects to promote environmental and marine sustainability. At the V & A Waterfront, the free-to-enter public village Ocean Live Park will open on the 8th of February from 10:00 to 19:00 daily and it will be packed with activities for the whole family.

The Sustainability Pavilion will provide an Immersive Experience for children and adults to be educated and inspired about the Ocean as well as an upcycled art exhibition.

The Two Oceans Aquarium will be hosting various events including the inaugural Ocean Innovation Africa Summit, Trash Bash Beach Clean-up, Ocean Race Learning Programme, and a Valentines Dinner.

The Ocean Sports Festival will be kicked off between the 12th and 19th of February, followed by Dragon Boat Racing, and the V&A Waterfront MTN Take the Stage performance at the amphitheatre.

The Ocean Race’s One Blue Voice Campaign is an initiative to drive public support for ocean rights. The campaign aims to give the ocean a voice and put in place a global framework for protecting the marine environment.

One of the most prominent teams participating in the race, 11th Hour Racing, has South Africa’s own Zandile Ndhlovu “The Mermaid” at the face of its campaign to protect the ocean. 11th Hour Racing is a US-based foundation that works with sailing, maritime and coastal communities for the ocean.

Working towards a shared value ecosystem

The V&A Waterfront first hosted what was then known as Whitbread Round the World Yacht Race in 1997.  The first edition of the world Yacht Race was known as the Volvo Ocean Race in 2014, 2015 and 2017. The race catapulted South Africa into the international spotlight, in a similar manner to what was achieved with the 2010 FIFA World Cup. The event was viewed by over 150 million people around the world and contributed more than R540m to the national economy.

The nature of this global race is that it is a showcase of the ocean’s economy and positions South Africa as a serious maritime economy, through the association with other global host cities.

Green said: “In order to deliver the Ocean Race, you need world class infrastructure, from repair facilities to hospitality and many other critical services and logistics to enable a global event of this magnitude. All of this is offered by the V&A Waterfront, a national economic asset for South Africa’s coastal, marine and ocean economies.”

“The Waterfront is proud to be host to The Ocean Race. We are even more excited about its global vision for the care of our oceans and are ready to welcome it back to our shores,” adds Green.

The V&A Waterfront’s maritime heritage

  • The V&A Waterfront is located in the oldest working harbour in the Southern Hemisphere.
  • It is the base for scientific and ocean governance contributing to the deeper understanding of the impact of – and on – the Southern Ocean.
  • Berthing place for the Department of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries’ S. A. Agulhas II which conducts research at the Antarctic Ocean.
  • Berthing for deep sea fishing vessels, offshore fishing and fish factories. The marine and industrial division works with 295 tenants ranging from casual tenants to 42 small fishing outfits known as Blue Boats, 68 permanent Marina berths, 25 charter boats and longer-term major tenants.
  • The V&A Waterfront shipyard specialises in luxury yacht repairs.
  • The V&A Waterfront is also a Host Venue Partner to the Annual Boat Show.
  • Host Port to Major Ocean Races including Cape To Rio, the Cape 31 Invitational Regatta, Clipper Round The World Yacht Race.
  • Manager of the Cape Town Cruise Liner Terminal.
  • Home to ocean sports including dragon boat racing, stand-up paddle, swimming and dingy sailing.

The Host Venue sustainability initiatives

  • The Waterfront currently has 14 Green Star rated buildings, making the Waterfront property the greenest property on the continent of Africa!
  • It is home to the Two Oceans Aquarium and its Education Foundation which is dedicated to educating the public and school children about the ocean while also leading the ocean research sector.
  • The V&A Waterfront is a leader in sea water district cooling and recycling technology.
  • Our new Blackwater Treatment Plant will see up to 525 000 litres of water a day saved through a recycling method using Food Chain Reactor (FCR) technology to treat the sewage wastewater from the Waterfront’s Victoria Wharf shopping centre.
  • The V&A Waterfront has an ocean sustainability program that includes protecting the ocean from plastics pollution.
  • Key goal is to be carbon-neutral by 2035.
  • Home to Ocean Hub Africa, which supports ocean minded innovation businesses.
  • Founding partner of Blue Cape, an initiative of ocean-focused businesses and the City of Cape Town.
  • Seals and other marine animals are regular visitors to the Waterfront, and even whales and dolphins are sometimes spotted in the harbour. The Marine Wildlife Management Programme is designed to reduce conflict between wildlife, shipping, and other activities, and to minimise injuries to wildlife in the harbour through education.