NEWS

Tuesday, 13 July, ARENDAL (Norway): Concerts, airshows, fireworks and a host of top-class entertainment will all be part of the mix, with NGP - the organisers of the BMW Norwegian Grand Prix (16-18 July) - laying on a weekend of festivities as Class 1 returns to Arendal for round two of the UIM Class 1 World Powerboat Championship, round 1 of the Class 1 European Championship.

Tucked away and hidden amongst the majestic fjords of the south coast of Norway, the picturesque town of Arendal provides the perfect setting for top-flight powerboat racing.

The wet pits are located in the Pollen - the heart of the town - and the race circuit, one of the most challenging and spectacular on the Class 1 calendar, runs inside the fjords allowing the crowds who turn out in their tens-of-thousands to line the shores or take to the water in a flotilla of spectator boats – hoping for a Norwegian win!

2010 sees a round of the Class 1 World Powerboat Championship being staged in Norway for the 17th consecutive year; Arendal hosted the first in 1994 - won by Victory Team’s Saeed Al Tayer and Felix Serralles - and this year hosts its 13th Grand Prix.  Oslo has hosted eight Grands Prix and Trondheim two.

The action on the water kicks-off with first practice on Friday afternoon (13.30-15.30) followed by the Class 1 Edox Speed Run and then switches to the land for the spectacular Arendal boat parade (19.30) around the Pollen.

Second practice on Saturday morning (12.00-12.30) is immediately followed by qualifying in the Edox Pole Position (12.45-13.30), with Race 1 at 17.00hrs.  A final practice on Sunday morning (10.00-11.00) is followed by Race 2 at 14.30hrs.

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