It’s a double win for Team AkzoNobel, scooping the Inmarsat Communications Award for a second consecutive time for the Melbourne to Hong Kong leg of the Volvo Ocean Race and winning the HGC In-Port Race!
As Satellite Communications Partner for the Volvo Ocean Race, our satellite connectivity not only provides critical safety services, weather updates and tracking, it is also used to bring the extreme offshore sailing race to life through social media.
Every Volvo Ocean 65 is equipped with Inmarsat C, the only GMDSS-approved satellite safety service, FleetBroadband for always-on voice and broadband services and IsatPhone 2 satellite phones for the boats’ liferaft grab bags.
Leg 4, Melbourne to Hong Kong, day 04 on board AkzoNobel. Photo by Sam Greenfield/Volvo Ocean Race..
Hong Kong Stopover. Awards night. Inmarsat Team Comms Award for AkzoNobel handed by Rupert Pearce CEO Inmarsat.
The 2017-18 edition relies on each Onboard Reporter (OBR) to send back photos, videos and blogs and for the first time each crew member is also equipped with a Crew Communicator to add their own onboard experiences to the conversation.
The award was presented to the team by Inmarsat CEO Rupert Pearce ahead of an exciting and packed weekend of sailing in Hong Kong.
On Saturday 27 January, Team AkzoNobel fought hard to take the HGC In-Port Race in tough sailing conditions of 6-10 knot winds, closely followed by Dongfeng Race Team in second and Team Brunel in third.
The Around Hong Kong Island Race on Sunday 28 Sunday provided another chance to watch the fleet in action with a win for MAPFRE, second for Dongfeng Race Team and third place for Sun Hung Kai/Scallywag, who were also winners of Leg 4 of the race in their home port of Hong Kong – the first ever Volvo Ocean Race stopover in the region.
As the teams pause for breath before they stage the next part of the race to Guangzhou, China on 1 February, make sure you keep up with all the latest action and find out more about our special partnership with the 45,000 nautical mile round-the-word race.
