The basic schedule and route for the 2017-18 Volvo Ocean Race are below. Anywhere from a week to a couple of days in advance of each offshore leg, there will also be an in-port race relatively close alongshore, where spectators can easily watch. Click here for details on port cities and stopover schedules.
Leg 1 October 22 Alicante, Spain, to Lisbon, Portugal (700 nautical miles)
Leg 2 November 5 Lisbon to Cape Town, South Africa (7,000 nm)
Leg 3 December 10 Cape Town to Melbourne, Australia (6,500 nm)
Leg 4 January 2 Melbourne to Hong Kong (6,000 nm)
Leg 5 February 1 Hong Kong to Guangzhou, China (100 nm: non-scoring)
Leg 6 Feb 7 Hong Kong to Auckland, New Zealand (6,100 nm)
Leg 7 March 18 Auckland to Itajaí, Brazil (7,600 nm)
Leg 8 April 22 Itajaí to Newport, Rhode Island (5,700 nm)
Leg 9 May 20 Newport to Cardiff, Wales (3,300 nm)
Leg 10 June 10 Cardiff to Gothenburg, Sweden (1,300 nm)
Leg 11 June 21 Gothenburg to The Hague, Netherlands (520 nm)
Final In-Port Race June 30, 2018
Scoring for the race is, of necessity, somewhat complicated, given the varying lengths and difficulty of the legs. That said, the basic protocol is as follows.
First place in any leg earns 7 points, second place gets 6 points, and so on down to just a single point for a last-place finisher. If a team fails to finish, it gets zero points. A bonus point is also awarded for each leg win; to the first team to round Cape Horn; to the team with the best overall elapsed time for the race. Finally, double points will be awarded for the two Southern Ocean legs (Cape Town to Melbourne, and Auckland to Itajai) and the North Atlantic leg from Newport to Cardiff, to reflect their length and difficulty. The boat with the most points wins!
Note, results from the in-port races will once again be used to resolve any ties that might result. That’s pretty much it. For the latest standings, click here.
