The UK’s leading marina operator, MDL Marinas, has signed a six-year deal to become Ben Ainslie Racing’s Official UK Marina Partner. The exciting news sees the MDL group get behind the team – as they compete on home waters for the first time – and join the nation to back Ben Ainslie Racing’s quest to bring the Cup home.
To support the Team, MDL has provided essential access to the Solent to enable team training. Ben Ainslie Racing has also been given access to MDL’s network of leading marina locations and facilities across the south.
Up to 500,000 visitors are expected when the America’s Cup World Series comes to Portsmouth. The four-day sporting and entertainment spectacular (Thursday 23rd – Sunday 26th July 2015) provides awe-inspiring opportunities to watch the world’s best sailors battle it out on high speed AC45 foiling catamarans.
This event also marks a historical moment – seeing a British America’s Cup team race in an official America’s Cup event in UK waters for the first time since 1851.
Dean Smith, Operations and Marketing Director at MDL Marinas, commented: “We are absolutely delighted to have been selected as the Marina Partner for BAR and to be part of the winning formula to help bring the Cup home. We are a long-standing British company and are proud to be part of this historical moment. We are planning a number of events and opportunities in and around our marinas and will be getting our customers and teams fully involved in the excitement of it all. We will certainly be backing the Ben Ainslie Racing team all the way.”
On behalf of the Team, Ben Ainslie commented: “It’s great to have MDL Marinas on board as our Official UK Marina Partner. As the leading marina operator in the UK and the longest-standing British marina group it was a natural fit. We are looking forward to closely working together on this momentous challenge.”