R 222
2018 -- H 8176
Enacted 05/08/2018

H O U S E   R E S O L U T I O N
WELCOMING THE 2017-2018 VOLVO OCEAN RACE TO NEWPORT, RHODE ISLAND, ON MAY 19-20, 2018

Introduced By: Representatives Carson, Abney, Ruggiero, Morgan, and Mattiello
Date Introduced: May 08, 2018

     WHEREAS, The prestigious Volvo Ocean Race is a yacht race around the world, held
every three years. While the route varies from year to year, the race typically begins in Europe in
mid-October and concludes sometime in June after an eight to nine month journey. Each entry
has seven to eleven crew members who race day and night for up to twenty days at a time and
experience temperatures that range from 23 degrees Fahrenheit to 104 degrees Fahrenheit; and
     WHEREAS, The 2017-2018 Volvo Ocean Race is the 13th time this competition has
been run. The current race began in Alicante, Spain, and will run through numerous ports of call
across the world including Lisbon, Portugal, Cape Town, South Africa, Melbourne, Australia,
Hong Kong, China, Guangzhou, China, Auckland, New Zealand, Itajai, Brazil, Newport, Rhode
Island, United States, Cardiff, Wales, United Kingdom, Gothenburg, Sweden, and The Hague,
Netherlands; and
     WHEREAS, Newport will proudly host the Volvo Ocean Race for the second time, as it
also hosted this important race in 2015 for the 12th edition of this race. The City By The Sea, one
of our nation’s most important sailing hubs, is the perfect place to hold leg 9 of the Volvo Ocean
Race and the In-Port race thanks to its incredible beauty, delectable food, first-class restaurants,
wonderful shops, taverns and galleries, glorious coastline, dazzling beaches, and a community
whose passion for sailing rivals any place on the globe; and
     WHEREAS, Newport is also fortunate to be the home of Sail Newport, Inc, an
organization founded in 1893, and dedicated to bringing the joy and excitement of sailing to the
wider public, and to preserving our precious natural resources. Thanks to its hard work and
dedication, Sail Newport is New England’s largest public sailing center and Rhode Island’s
premier public sailing site; now, therefore be it
     RESOLVED, That this House of Representatives of the State of Rhode Island and
Providence Plantations hereby welcomes the 2017-2018 Volvo Ocean Race to Newport, Rhode
Island, on May 19-20 of 2018; and be it further
     RESOLVED, That the Secretary of State be and hereby is authorized and directed to
transmit a duly certified copy of this resolution to the Honorable Henry F. Winthrop, Mayor of
the City of Newport.
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LC005301
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