The Tall Ships Races Lisboa

From July 22-25 2016, Tall Ships from across the globe will anchor in Lisbon, Portugal for The Tall Ships Races 2016 - 60th Anniversary of the Tall Ships Races. Lisbon welcomed the first edition of The Tall Ships Races in 1956, hosted by Aporvela´s founder, Eng. Luís Guimarães Lobato. With the rise of industrial revolution, Tall Ships were replaced by steam engines. The 1st and 2nd World War conflicts caused Tall Ships several damages, as they remained docked or were used as war prizes. The first edition of the Tall Ships Races had the main purpose of maintaining the Tall Ships sailing traditions and give future generations the opportunity of developing sail skills. Due to the race achievement, The Tall Ships Races followed several annual editions up until today, maintaining the same purpose: Promote sail training for youngsters around the world! APORVELA (Portuguese Association for Sail Training) was founded in 1980, with the mission of promoting sail training and the preservation of the National Nautical Patrimony. With the cooperation of ISTA and other entities, Aporvela organized important Tall Ships Races in: 1982 – Cutty Sark Tall Ships Races; Lisbon Sail 1992 – Cutty Sark Tall Ships Races; Colombo 1994 – Cutty Sark Tall Ships Races; Prince Henry Memorial 1998 – Cutty Sark Tall Ships Races; Vasco da Gama Memorial 2006 – 50th Anniversary The Tall Ships Races 2006; The Tall Ships Races Lisbon 2012. These races gather about 100 Tall Ships and a crew of over 3.000 youngsters from all over the world. Hundreds of thousands of people visited Lisbon (and Oporto) during the races, and were delighted with the exquisite fleet of Tall Ships. In 2002, a new committee was founded: Sail Training International – STI (former ISTA). Aporvela is a founding member. STI became a world wide organization. It is the main organizer of “Tall Ships Races” every year, providing a challenging adventure which promotes team spirit, self knowledge and cultural exchanges.