Mayor and NCCVB President to Scout America's Cup Races in England

From September 16-20, 2011, Newport Mayor Stephen C. Waluk and Newport Visitors Bureau President Evan Smith will visit Plymouth, England, to observe the second stop in the inaugural America's Cup World Series (AC World Series). During the event, featuring both fleet and match racing, Waluk and Smith will be meeting with America’s Cup event officials, city leaders and numerous planning and promotional agencies that helped develop the Plymouth event.

"This visit provides a great opportunity to see the impact of the races on the host community. Gaining a first-hand perspective on the benefits and challenges of the America's Cup races should better prepare Newport for hosting an event of this magnitude," Waluk said.

“Visiting Plymouth will offer us the unique opportunity to observe how the destination has set up the their transportation system to accommodate the influx of visitors, the signage that has been developed to aid the flow of thousands of people, the strategic placement of promotional sponsorship banners and what the overall need and impact will be in terms of housing sponsors, crews, media and spectators,” Smith said. “By gaining this key background information, the City of Newport and the NCCVB will be able to better educate our local businesses on how to best organize for this exciting event coming to the City-by-the-Sea next June.”

During their visit, Mayor Waluk has been invited to speak with the City of Plymouth Lord Mayor, Councillor Peter Brookshaw, about their interest in exploring a sister city relationship between the two cities. Both thriving coastal communities, Plymouth and Newport have worked together for more than 50 years as host ports for the Observer Single-handed Trans-Atlantic Race (OSTAR ) and their shared history also includes the role of major naval institutions, marine trades and tourism.

Newport was recently unveiled as the final stop of the 2011-2012 AC World Series, which organizers promises to be a dramatic finish to the first season of the new AC45 professional circuit development. It will take place June 23-July 1, 2012.