Naming the boat Ericsson 3, Gordana Kovačević, president of Ericsson Croatia, then performed the tradition of smashing a bottle of champagne across the boat's bow at 9.30pm in front of the World Trade Center at Barcelona's harbor.
About 1200 invited key stakeholders and customers participating in the World Mobile Congress were on hand to witness the event.
"This is a fantastic opportunity to really start using the race to interact with our customers," says Ola Rembe, Vice President of Communications for the Ericsson Racing Team.
Volvo Ocean Race is considered one of the toughest in the world. The 2008-2009 race will start on October 11 in Alicante, Spain, and will finish in St Petersburg, Russia, in June 2009. The course includes stopovers in India and China.
Henry Kings, Vice President of Sales at Ericsson Racing Team, says the racing boat can be seen as a miniature version of the telecom industry. "I mean, it is a tough environment with fierce competition. Imagine a crew of 10 sailing in the toughest possible conditions for nine months. That requires some of Ericsson's core values: perseverance, professionalism and respect."
The name-giving ceremony was the first official event of Ericsson's campaign in the 2008-2009 race. During stopovers in the competition, Ericsson will also arrange social events with invited customers.
