Located in the North Atlantic ocean around 570 kilometres (354 miles) directly west of the city of Dakar in Senegal, the Cabo Verde archipelago has long been a familiar landmark for The Ocean Race crews racing south towards the Equator on the opening leg of the round-the-world race.

In previous editions The Ocean Race fleet has often passed close by – or even through the middle – of the African island nation. In the 2022- 23 edition, however, for the first time ever the fleet will stop in Cabo Verde at the end of the 1,900 nautical mile opening leg from Alicante, Spain.

This makes the Cabo Verde Republic the first ever West African nation in the race’s history to host a stopover.

First discovered in 1456 by Portuguese and Genoese sailors, Cabo Verde grew prosperous throughout the 16th and 17th centuries, attracting merchants, privateers, and pirates. In the 18th century the region became an important commercial centre and re-supply stopover for commercial shipping routes. Cabo Verde gained independence from Portugal in 1975. Made up of 10 volcanic islands and five islets, the Cabo Verde Republic is 99 percent water and one per cent land. The archipelago is divided into the Barlavento (Windward) group to the north and the Sotavento (Leeward) group to the south. The Ocean Race fleet will be hosted in the Port of Mindelo on the island of S.o Vicente in the northern group.

Cabo Verde enjoys warm weather year round making it an ideal water sports location. The republic has produced several windsurfing and kitesurfing world champions and it often hosts international competitions for both sports.

This great ocean state is one of the top 10 marine biodiversity hotspots in the world – especially in regards to reef fish, coral, lobster and molluscs. Twenty-four species of whales and dolphins have been recorded in Cabo Verde – representing almost 30 per cent of all the cetacean species in the world.

Up to 20 per cent of Cabo Verde’s energy production comes from renewable sources (two per cent solar and 18 per cent wind) – one of the highest usages in sub-Saharan Africa – and the archipelago’s government has a target to increase renewable energy use up to 50 per cent by 2030.

During the Cabo Verde stopover The Ocean Race will coincide with the region’s famed Ocean Week – an event which focuses on local and international sustainability issues and includes a cultural and gastronomic event known as the Kavala (mackerel) Fresk Festival, and ExpoMar – a fair to promote business and disseminate technical and scientific knowledge around the sustainable use of marine resources.