The spectacular Extreme Sailing Series will compete in Barcelona. Photo: Jesús Renedo

From July 20 to 23, Barcelona will first host the Extreme Sailing Series, considered as the formula 1 of the candle, a competition that, in its 11th edition, runs 8 countries on 3 continents in 10 months. For four days, the city will be filled with free activities around the sail open to all public, which will be able to follow the show of these very fast flying sailboats from the beaches.

Since its creation in 2007, the Extreme Sailing Series is an extreme sailing circuit in stage format designed for spectators, as they offer action near the coast in 8 countries on 3 continents and attract some of the best regatists around the world who compete in flying catamarans over GC32 hydroalas in short and fast sleeves. The Extreme Sailing Series also offers a unique VIP experience, allowing a guest to be on board as a crew during the competitions. Visitors around the world can follow the competition through free online and live broadcasts and television coverage.

The show in the water will be completed with the fleet of catamarans Flying Phantom, which will compete every morning as part of the 2017 championship of this class that is disputed in the European Acts of Extreme Sailing Series for the first time this year.

The fourth event of the season will be supported by the FNOB (Fundació Navocació Oceanica Barcelona) and will match the 25th anniversary of the 1992 Olympic Games. Barcelona thus joins Qingdao, Rio de Janeiro and Sydney in the list of Olympic headquarters where the Extreme Sailing Series have held an Act. The agreement signed by the organization of the competition, OC Sport, and the FNOB provides for the holding of the sports event in the conical city over the next four years.

"We are delighted to return to Spain and to take the Series to Barcelona for the first time. This Mediterranean city meets many of the requirements we seek in the venues that host the competition: excellent conditions of navigation, commercial interest and the proximity of the competition to the coast. It is the perfect addition to the rest of European headquarters that we will visit this summer and I have no doubt that the show by which the Series is known worldwide will be repeated in Barcelona in the next four years," said Andy Tourell, Director of the Extreme Sailing Series Event.

David Escudé, Commissioner of Sports of the City of Barcelona and President of the FNOB, added: "The task of working closely with OC Sport, organizers of the Extreme Sailing Series, to bring to Barcelona one of the most spectacular sailing events in the world is an honour and an extraordinary recognition of the work done by the FNOB in the positioning of the city of Barcelona as a reference of the international sailing. Used to the great events and equipped with excellent infrastructure to organize them, Barcelona will be able to respond to this opportunity, which will attract the looks of thousands of sailing fans from all over the world to our city, certainly an ideal destination for sponsors and teams of the Extreme Sailing Series."

"The celebration of the Extreme Sailing Series in the waters of Barcelona shows the good position our city occupies in the international sailing of competition. Thanks to the support of the citizen institutions and the work carried out, among others, by the FNOB, the city clubs and the Catalan and Spanish federations of Vela, Barcelona is already a reference among the great sailing events, such as Barcelona World Race, The Race, Olympic and cruise world championships, and New York Barcelona, among others. The FNOB is committed to the collaboration with OC Sport in organizing the event at its Barcelona meeting, with the conviction that this will be a complete success," said Xosé-Carlos Fernández, Director General of the FNOB.

The free-access village for the public will be located next to the hotel W in the Plaza Rosa dels Vents, in the Barceloneta district, and the race field will be the same that fired the IMOCA 60 fleet at the Barcelona World Race. The spectators will be able to follow all the action in the water from the Village or from the beach of Sant Sebastià, in an accessible and totally free way.

The Extreme Sailing Series return to Spain for the first time since the Act held in Almería in October 2011 and this will also be the first time that the catamarans on GC32 hydroalas are sailing in Barcelona. However, this is not the first time that the founders and organizers of the Extreme Sailing Series, OC Sport, have organized a sailing event in the city. In 2006, OC Sport created and co-organized the Barcelona World Race, a two-stop round of the world, a novel concept in the world of the ocean race. This agreement allows OC Sport and FNOB to work together again to continue to push the limits of the sailing in Barcelona with another sports event on a global scale.

In 2017, the Series will continue to develop its reach in the media hand of a new TV image distribution partner, IMG, and a new host broadcaster, Red Haged. IMG, the world's largest sports program distributor, leads the distribution strategy to ensure that the Series not only reach the followers in situ, but also those who follow them around the world. In order to create quality content for both digital and traditional media, Red Honed offers coverage of the event through digital platforms, live coverage and an eight-episode TV series that is distributed to channels around the world and is a great attraction to the circuit sponsors. For more information about the sponsors, click here.

The Extreme Sailing Series has achieved the "Special Event Status" by World Sailing, the international sailing federation, and support the promotion of sailing in new markets and to new audiences.