December 7, 2010 – The tradition is now well established: the World Yacht Racing Forum, co-located with the Yacht Racing Design and Technology Symposium and the International Superyacht Coatings Conference will, once again, conclude the 2010 yacht racing season.
Following the success of the first two editions of the event, over 300 delegates and 50 speakers will head to Estoril, Portugal, on December 14-15. Leading industry figures, media and sailing personalities who make international yacht racing, the athletes, event organisers, venues, sponsor and many more will gather and spend two days discussing the current issues affecting the sport, debate solutions and exchange ideas.
As explains Loïck Peyron, the keynote speaker of day two: “The sport of sailing is very broad; the World Yacht Racing Forum has become the place where all the different sides of it are represented and debated.”
The event will start informally on Monday 13 December with a cocktail reception at the Palacio hotel; one of the most charming and historic 5 star hotels within the region. The debates will begin on Tuesday 14 with a keynote address by America’s Cup winner James Spithill, followed by eight plenary sessions split in two days.
This year’s Forum opens up to a number of speakers and panellists from outside of the sport, who will help the audience understand what sailing and yacht racing can learn from other disciplines. As a result, 80 % of the speakers are new. The event also introduces new topics such as sustainability and respect of the environment, brand management and sailing’s future in the Olympic Games; mainly topics that have been chosen by the World Yacht Racing Forum advisory board and delegates from the previous edition of the Forum.
The World Yacht Racing Forum offers unparalleled networking opportunities amongst which a lunch offered on Tuesday by Multi One Design. Some new features have also been added, including the inaugural Informa Yacht Group Golf Classic, a cocktail reception hosted by Turismo de Estoril and Hotel Palacio and the Yacht Racing Images Exhibition 2010 presented by financial group Mirabaud and supported by Canon.
Details of the conference programme and speakers are available on the event’s website: www.worldyachtracingforum.com
Bernard Schopfer, MaxComm Communication