RIYADH: In line with its commitment to conserving marine ecosystems and desire to promote the next generation of sailors, Red Sea Global has announced a partnership with The Ocean Race for the next two editions of the race. RSG has also partnered with Warner Bros. Discovery which will amplify their stories around the world.
The developer behind two of the world’s most ambitious regenerative tourism projects — The Red Sea and AMAALA — RSG was recently rebranded from The Red Sea Development Co.
Known as ‘sailing’s greatest round-the-world challenge’, TOR has been providing the ultimate test for sailing teams since 1973.
Beyond the race itself, TOR acts as a global platform to raise awareness of the environmental challenges facing the world’s marine environment and drive positive change.
“We are proud to become the Regenerative Project Partner of TOR. Sustainability sits at the very heart of our work at RSG, so TOR – and its impressive ambitions when it comes to ocean health – makes them a natural fit as a partner,” said John Pagano, group CEO of RSG.
He added: “The sea has always been an important part of Saudi Arabia’s history and heritage. Through this partnership, we hope to support the efforts of TOR to raise awareness of the challenges facing our oceans globally today, and protect the outstanding beauty of the marine ecosystems in areas such as the Red Sea.”
As partners, RSG will help promote the race and drive awareness of the importance of ocean health to an international audience. The partnership will see RSG hold events and educational initiatives, supported by content developed in collaboration with WBD.
RSG intends to use its partnership with TOR to help inspire the next generation of Saudi sailors, promoting a new sport to a Kingdom that has enjoyed a crucial and historic relationship with the sea for over 4,000 years.
“We have lots of wonderful partnerships but the one that I’m most excited about is the partnership and sponsorship of TOR,” Tracy Lanza, group head, global brand development and marketing, RSG, told Arab News in an exclusive interview.
“What is really interesting about TOR is that they have committed themselves to the health of the ocean, which was so important for us because that’s also part of our commitment to making sure that people are aware of the importance of coral health, of mangroves and of the ocean itself,” she continued.
Talking about RSG’s commitment to the environment, Amjaad Alangari, senior marketing manager, RSG, told Arab News: “We have a new mandate. We have an ambition that grew with us from the past and is still growing, which is to build for the people and the planet.
We are visionaries, we are innovators… And we have more projects to come with an ambition to protect and to enhance the environment around us.”
The 14th edition of TOR will start from Alicante, Spain, on Jan. 15, 2023, and will finish in Genova, Italy, early in the summer of 2023. The race will visit nine iconic cities around the globe over a six-month period and will feature a leg with the longest racing distance in the 50-year history of the event; a 12,750 nautical mile, one-month marathon from Cape Town, South Africa to Itajaí, Brazil.
“The Red Sea is a new type of development, and has a vision to prioritize both people and planet based around commitments in support of regenerative tourism. Similarly, this is an innovative new type of partnership for us, where our collaboration with RSG and WBD results in a stronger outcome in pursuit of this goal,” said Johan Salén, the co-owner of TOR.
Mike Rich, head of sports marketing solutions, WBD, added: “We are proud to be the worldwide broadcaster for TOR and welcome the opportunity to build on the stories we will tell about sailing’s toughest round-the-world race with those around the RSG project, particularly this combined effort to promote ocean health and its wider conservation.”
