Helly Hansen Outfits Team SCA for 2014-15 Volvo Ocean Race

by Joumana Lovstad on 18 Oct 2013 Helly Hansen, the Norwegian manufacturer of premium performance apparel and footwear, signs a three-year agreement as the official clothing and footwear supplier for SCA, a leading supplier of sustainable personal care and forest products who is heading into the 2014-15 Volvo Ocean Race.

Team SCA, an all-women’s team, was the first campaign announced for the next Volvo Ocean Race, which starts on October fourth, 2014. To date seven female crew members have been selected to be part of the team. For the past seven months the team has been training from their base in Lanzarote, Spain. At the end of September SCA launched its new Volvo Ocean 65 and the international crew will continue their rigorous training program right up to the start of the race.

Helly Hansen’s leading technologies and innovative Scandinavian design were deciding factors in SCA’s selection of Helly Hansen as its official clothing partner. With a wide product range in offshore clothing, base layers and footwear, as well as a line of marine inspired sportswear, the company covers all the requirements for the campaign. Helly Hansen has initiated a special project to develop a range of sailing gear with a clear SCA visual identity. This commitment also includes new and progressive design for the shore team and supporters. Some of these products will also be available for sale through Helly Hansen's network of shops.

'The athletes on Team SCA are going to be exposed to every imaginable ocean environment from the Southern Ocean to the tropics across the race’s 40,000 nautical miles' says Erik Burbank, Helly Hansen’s Vice President of Global Marketing. 'In SCA we have found a management team, a group of sailors, and a sponsor skilled enough not only to be successful in the competition, but also to live up to the spirit of the VOR itself. This is exactly the kind of team that Helly Hansen looks to partner with. We are looking forward to the start of the race.'

Helly Hansen has been associated with teams in the Volvo Ocean Race since the round the world race started 40 years ago. Their partnership with the all-female Team SCA marks an important moment in the company’s development.

'Helly Hansen was a fairly obvious choice of clothing partner for us as a team,' says Richard Brisius with Team SCA. 'For Team SCA the main deciding factor was Helly Hansen’s desire to develop and design a range of clothing specifically for the female offshore sailor. It has been an interesting journey and we are very excited about the new range and the impact that it will have both from a performance as well as visual aspect.'

For more information, visit SCA Website and Team SCA Website