Rain fails to dampen opening ceremony

The early afternoon rain did little to deter the crowds of visitors who turned up to watch the opening ceremony of Race 2 in the Historical Seas Tall Ships Regatta, Varna, Bulgaria.

Robin Snouck Hurgronje, the Race Chairman, joined many local dignitaries including Kiril Yordanov, the Mayor of Varna to give his opening speech.

With Mir, Russia – one of the largest tall ships in the world – and, the local Bulgarian Barquentine, Kaliakra as the backdrop, the stage was set for a fine opening to this historical Varna stopover. Varna is the largest city and seaside resort on the Bulgarian Black Sea coast, and this is the first time a tall ships event has taken place here. A huge turnout of visitors therefore, is expected during the next three days.

In his opening speech, Robin Snouck Hurgronje (pictured) said he and the Sail Training International organising team are proud and happy to be in Varna. äóìThis is the first time we’ve been here in the Black Seaäó_ We want to come in contact with the people of Varna because we want them to understand our mission and to become a member of our international family. So we really hope to welcome thousands of people here in Varna to look at the beautiful ships and enjoy this wonderful event.äó

To track the fleet as they race click here. 

To view the current placings of the race click here. 

To view the combined race results of Leg 1 and 2 of Race 1 click here.

The Historical Seas Tall Ships Regatta is organised by Sail Training International.