The event falls under the banner of The Ocean Race, the iconic fully-crewed offshore around the world race, first contested in 1973 when Portsmouth served as its start and finish port.Today, The Ocean Race sits proudly at the intersection of sport and sustainability, with its award-winning Racing with Purpose programme focused on ocean literacy, ocean science, and advocacy.

When the fleet is in Portsmouth, there will be a public area - Ocean Live Park - at Gunwharf Quays, with family activities, engaging and educational ocean health activities and content and activations showcasing the extraordinary achievements of the sailors and teams in the Race. The second leg of The Ocean Race Europe will start on the weekend of the 16/17 August.

Portsmouth has a long tradition of hosting successful sailing events going back to the very first Whitbread Round the World Race in 1973. It is also exciting that the themes and passions of The Ocean Race Europe align perfectly with Portsmouth’s themes around sustainability and having a healthy ocean.

Portsmouth has played an important role in the storied history of The Ocean Race. Legend has it that arrangements for the precursor to the event, the Whitbread Round the World Race, were finalised over a pint of beer in a Portsmouth pub. The Race itself then started and/or finished from Portsmouth for its first four editions, and last returned to the city for a stopover in 2006. 

UK sailing legends like Sir Chay Blyth, Sir Robin Knox-Johnston, Clare Francis, Tracy Edwards, Ian Walker and Simon Fisher, among many others, have burnished their sailing legacies from their achievements in the Race.

With its long maritime history, today Portsmouth remains an important naval and commercial port with a strong connection to the sea and a keen interest in conservation and ocean health.