The Barcelona World Race is a new two-handed, non-stop round the world yacht race starting on the 11th November, 2007 (and to be held every four years). For the first time, this race will see the world's best professional sailors from both solo and fully crewed disciplines coming together to compete against each other in teams of two. Racing 25,000 miles over three months across the planet's most hostile and challenging oceans in high-performance IMOCA Open 60 monohulls. Never before has a two-handed, non-stop around the world race been staged and there has never been a crewed, non-stop round the world race in monohulls. This concept opens up a whole new world of possibilities in the sport of extreme offshore sailing both in terms of competition and race communications.


The Barcelona World Race will see sailors from the two worlds of solo sailing events, such as the famous Vendée Globe, and crewed events, like the Volvo Ocean Race , coming together to race in a unique format. The timing of this new global race also acts as a prelude to the Vendée Globe (to be held over the winter of 2008/09) providing an opportunity for skippers to fully test themselves and their boats before their solo circumnavigation. The prologue qualification event is planned to include stops in the UK and France, reuniting the fleet in Barcelona mid-October 2007.