Vendee Globe – qualche cifra |
World Yacht Racing Forum ha intervistato Christophe Baudry Communication Director della Vendée Globe, che ha dato qualche cifra. Interessanti, per certi aspetti, le affinità con la nostra regata più di successo quanto ad affluenza di pubblico, la Barcolana. Segno che è anche la formula a fare grande l’evento.
WYRF: Even in its sixth edition, the Vendée Globe still attracts a huge number of public in les Sables d’Olonne. What is the recipe for this success in your opinion?
Christophe Baudry, Vendée Globe Communication Director: “First of all, offshore single handed sailing is part of the French culture. But the event is also very popular and we work hard to keep this. We’ve had over 550’000 visitors since the opening of the village three weeks ago. That’s 25’000 people a day during the week and 85’000 over the week-ends.
WYRF: What does the public get; what structure have you put in place?
CB: “The access to the event is free for the public. That means people can walk on the pontoons, see the sailors and look at the boats in detail. The Race Village is spread over 15’000 square meters. There is an exhibition about the history of the race, a space for kids (we’ve had 10’000 of them with their classes), a space for the event’s partners, a restaurant, bars and much more.”
WYRF: Compared with the Volvo Ocean Race, the Vendée Globe doesn’t provide many hospitality opportunities. What return do you offer to your partners?
CB: “The Race Village opens three weeks before the event and provides many opportunities to our partners. For example, PRB welcomes 500 visitors a day during the entire period; that’s a lot of people. There is also a Race Office in Paris, established at the bottom of the Tour Montparnasse on a 700 sqm space. This office is open to the public and the event’s partners don’t need to pay to use it. We’ve put a 3’300 sqm banner on the Tour Montparnasse, visible all over Paris. Finally, there will be a smaller village in Les Sables for the arrival of the race. It’s also important to note that we have only three main partners: Conseil Général de Vendée, Ville des Sables d’Olonne and Sodebo (three institutional partners and one private). Their visibility is good, and not diluted with too many stickers. The official suppliers can use the event logo but they don’t get a direct visibility.”
WYRF: At the same time, you do not have the logistics of multiple stopovers or in-port regattas… Does this mean the race is less expensive to organize?
CB: “The budget for organizing the Vendée Globe is 7,3 million Euros. Four years ago, our budget was 6 million Euros and we got an estimated return of 114 million Euros in media value. It is definitely a very profitable event.”
WYRF: For who?
CB: “For everyone involved: the sponsors, the teams, the organizers. The media are also benefiting from the event. They give a great visibility to the event and get a lot of advertisement money in return. Finally, the Vendée department is very happy too.
WYRF: Where do you allocate the largest share of your organizing budget?
CB: “Most of the budget goes into the safety of the race, which means a good organization, safety at sea, weather, telecommunications… Communication is also a big part of the budget as we produce and distribute videos, photos, audios, texts… These two elements require fulltime staff during three months, 24 hours a day!
Then comes the Race Village in Les Sables d’Olonne and the Race Office in Paris.
And finally, prize money (490’000 €) and participation in the sailors life insurance.
Via Adonnante.com
