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The Spanish boat set off this morning from her base at Marina Rubicón, in Lanzarote

Spanish boat “Telefónica” set to compete in the Volvo Ocean Race 2011-2012 has set off today on the 2,000 mile (3,704 km) qualifier course which the team has chosen to sail in the Atlantic.

The race rules stipulate that each entry taking part in the round the world regatta, setting off from Alicante, Spain for the second consecutive year, must complete a 2,000 mile, non-stop qualifying course, with the entire crew due to take part in the first leg of the Volvo Ocean race 2011-12 set to finish in Cape Town, South Africa.

Vital opportunity ahead of the start

It is forecasted that “Telefónica” will be sailing conditions with 15 to 20 knots. This is time that will allow the team to carry out some important sailing tests, to try out sails and it will be a real chance to get to grips with this third generation of Volvo Open 70s.

Mallorca's Jordi Calafat, Olympic and America's Cup champion and trimmer and helmsman on the Spanish boat, underlines the importance of the course that “Telefónica” has set off on today: “It's crucial, because this is one of the last testing opportunities we'll have before we take certain decisions, so we need to make the most of it. We have a good schedule lined out for the next few days and there aren't many things left for us to decide one hundred per cent, although every last detail is important. This is a key date for us on our calendar in the run-up to the start.”

This is a great opportunity for Team Telefónica de be tested out and to finely tune all of the racing resources ahead of the upcoming competition. It will start on the 29th of October with the first inshore regatta, of which the will be ten over the course of the eleventh Volvo Ocean Race.

Spanish sailor Pepe Ribes pointed out that this is an opportunity “to test out the boat and the performance of some of the on board systems. There is also a lot of night sailing involved. We are already sailing two nights during the week, but it's great for the boat, batteries and chargers to try out sails of longer than a day.”

The Crew on “Telefónica” for the 2,000 mile qualifier:

Iker Martínez

Andrew Cape

Jordi Calafat

Neal McDonald

Xabi Fernández

Joao Signorini “Joca”

Pepe Ribes

Pablo Arrarte

Antonio “Ñeti” Cuervas-Mons

Zane Gills

Diego Fructuoso

To hear today's audio from Jordi Calafat (Spanish), visit: http://www.teamtelefonica.com/es/audios/12/JORDI-CALAFAT--%22ESTA-VUELTA-ES-MUY-DIFERENTE-A-LA-PASADA-EN-CUANTO-A-VELAS%22

To hear today's audio from Pepe Ribes (English), visit: http://www.teamtelefonica.com/en/audios/13/AN-UPDATE-ABOUT-THE-TEAM--BY-PEPE-RIBES