Hempel Yacht supplied free paint to support local initiative to refit the yacht for Oceans of Hope, the Sailing Sclerosis project

Lyngby, Denmark, 3-7-2014 — /EuropaWire/ — Hempel Yacht has supplied free paint to support a local initiative to refit the yacht for Oceans of Hope, the Sailing Sclerosis project. Oceans of Hope is the first ever circumnavigation crewed by people with multiple sclerosis and will emphasise ability instead of disability.

Refitted with Hempel coatings, Oceans of Hope set sail from Copenhagen on an historic journey around the world on June 15. Crewed by people with multiple sclerosis (MS), the 20-metre, bright orange yacht is the flagship of a campaign by the same name, organised by the Sailing Sclerosis Foundation. The aim of the 17-month project is to change perceptions of MS by showing what is possible when people with a chronic disease are empowered to conquer their individual challenges.

As an official supporter of the Danish project Oceans of Hope, Hempel Yacht supplied antifoulings (HEMPEL’S ANTIFOULING GLOBIC 9000), primers (HEMPADUR QUATTRO, HEMPALIN PRIMER), thinners and topcoats for topsides, deck and spars (HEMPALIN ENAMEL, HEMPATHANE TOPCOAT and HEMPATHANE ENAMEL).

Thomas Olsen, Marketing Manager for Yacht says: “We are proud to be part of the Oceans of Hope project and are delighted to have contributed to this local initiative that will inspire and empower people with MS around the world.”

“We are grateful to have Hempel Yacht’s support. Oceans of Hope aims to change perceptions of MS by showing what is possible when people with a chronic disease are empowered to conquer their individual challenges,” says Dr. Mikkel Anthonisen, the pioneer and founder of the Oceans of Hope Project, as well as the Founder of the Sailing Sclerosis Foundation and a MS specialist at Copenhagen University Hospital, Rigshospitalet.

The voyage will carry this year’s World MS Day theme of access across the globe, building stronger bonds across the global MS and sailing communities. As well as the Danish crew, people with MS from all over the world will be taking part in the event.

The route has taken the yacht from Copenhagen to Kiel, Germany for the first stopover (19-22 June) as well as Amsterdam, Netherlands (26-29 June). The yacht is now on its way to Portsmouth, UK (3-6 July), La Rochelle, France (10-14 July), Lisbon, Portugal (25 July – 2 August) and across the Atlantic Ocean to Boston, Massachusetts (USA) where the crew is due to arrive on 8 September. Oceans of Hope will take centre stage at the joint ACTRIMS-ECTRIMS conference, the world’s largest annual international conference devoted to basic and clinical research in multiple sclerosis.

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Hempel Yacht supplied free paint to support local initiative to refit the yacht for Oceans of Hope, the Sailing Sclerosis project