Sport18, the sports division of Network18, has acquired the marketing rights of the Volvo Ocean Race India stopover to be held at Kochi from December 3 to 13, 2008. Sport18 has tied up with Screenery Media to provide outdoor marketing for the event.
Kochi is South Asia’s only stopover of the famed ocean marathon, loaded with international corporate interests. The marketing rights were taken for an undisclosed figure.
Satish Menon, CEO, Sport18, said that as one of the biggest and most prestigious events in the calendar of sport, Volvo Ocean Race could give a big break for organisations in India to present themselves before the world media.
The Cochin Port Trust is responsible for organising the stopover in collaboration with the Kerala Tourism Department.
The race events in 2008-09 mark the 10th anniversary of this ocean marathon. Starting from Alicante in Spain on October 4, it will for the first time take in ports in Asia.
Spanning some 39,000 nautical miles, stopping at 11 ports and taking nine months to complete, the Volvo Ocean Race is the world’s premier yacht race for professional racing crews.
N Ramachandran, chairman, Cochin Port Trust said that the stopover at Kochi would be one of the most exciting visual extravaganzas that the country has ever witnessed. Apart from the world’s fastest ocean racing yachts with latest technology back-up, the event would also attract hundreds of other luxury yachts in this direction.
Kerala tourism too expects to draw mileage from the landmark event. “The state has a wealth of water bodies, which could splash into international spotlight, thanks to the yachting marathon,” V Venu, secretary, Kerala Tourism, said.
