Ocean Race leaves on a tide of happy memories

Date Published: 09-Jun-2009

THEY came, they saw – and they were conquered by the greatest welcome the Volvo Ocean Race has ever received at a stopover port.

Once again tens of thousands lined the Docks as the boats bid a final farewell to the city that had opened its heart to them. In the process more than 400,000 visitors turned this into an unforgettable two weeks of entertainment, on and off the water, pumping anything from €70 million to €90 million into the local economy.

President McAleese was on hand to see the boats out of Galway Bay as the sunshine of the previous two weeks gave way with perfect timing to rising winds and rain to speed the boats on their way.

First to leave was the Green Dragon with skipper Ian Walker, who had done more than anyone to bring this event into the heart of the city and the people.

Not far behind them, Ericsson 3 skipper Magnus Olssen – one of the real characters of the race – hung a banner from the back of his yacht ‘Go Raith Maith Agaibh Gaillimh – Slán’ as their mark of appreciation for the city’s hospitality.

Puma skipper Ken Reade didn’t seem to want to leave. “I think I want to move to Ireland. It is always sunny (at least when we were there). The golf is amazing. The people couldn’t be nicer.

“You can get a pint of beer just about anywhere you turn and all we did was…