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Three racing yachts reaching across open sea under a big spinnaker
Photo: Royce Fonseca / Unsplash

Volvo 70

Box rule: limits, built by many designers

Boats
6
Results
18
Wins
12
Races
6
Length
21.5m
Beam
5.7m
Draft
4.5m
OverviewCompareBoats6Races6

Why sailors choose the Volvo 70

The Volvo Open 70 was the box-rule boat of the Volvo Ocean Race, and ex-race boats now chase line honours and records in the big offshore classics. Owners buy them because they remain among the fastest monohulls of their size, with wins in the Sydney Hobart, Fastnet, Bermuda Race and Transpac. They are now old, complex boats that need serious refits and professional upkeep to stay competitive.

  • Box rule built for round-the-world racing
  • Very fast offshore; VO70s set the Fastnet monohull record in 2011
  • Ex-race boats win line honours and IRC overall in classic races
  • A step up for teams coming from TP52s
  • Ageing, complex boats needing major refits and pro maintenance

Our note

Most successful

  1. 1Aiolos6 wins · 9 results
  2. 2I Love Poland2 wins · 5 results
  3. 3Desafío 5331 win · 1 results

Specifications

Box rule: limits, built by many designers

Length
21.5m
Beam
5.7m
Draft
4.5m
Keel
canting

Box rule for the Volvo Ocean Race: length, beam and draft are the class reference dimensions; boats differ.

Published figures for the design; individual boats are often modified. Sources: en.wikipedia.org

What sailors and testers say · in our words, from the linked pages

  • Three VO70s led the 2011 Fastnet monohulls, with Ian Walker's Abu Dhabi breaking the course record, though Team Sanya suffered a flood and gear damage.

    Yachting World race report · Yachting World, 2011

  • The broker lists Sydney Hobart, Fastnet, Bermuda and Transpac wins by two sister VO70s, pitching them as a step up for TP52 teams.

    MCD Boutique Yacht Brokerage (selling Pyewacket 70), via Sail-World · Sail-World, 2025