Estonian Review/BNS
About 40 out of the one hundred or so vessels to take part in Tall Ships Race 2013 this summer are expected to call at the ports of Saaremaa Island, the regional newspaper Saarte Hääl said.

The vessels will be in Saaremaa from 22-23 July. The Tall Ships Race 2013 will consist of two legs. In Leg 1, the ships will sail from Arhus in Denmark to Helsinki in Finland, while in Leg 2 they will sail from Riga, Latvia to Szczecin in Poland. Between the two legs there will be a Cruise in Company from Helsinki to Riga, as part of which some of the vessels will visit Saaremaa, the paper said.

Arhus will serve as host port for the vessels from 4-7 July, Helsinki from 17-20 July, Riga from 25-28 July, and Szczecin from 3-6 August.

Madis Rallmann, board member of STA Estonia who co-ordinates the visit ofthe tall ships to Saaremaa, said 45 ships calling at Saaremaa ports would be a satisfying outcome. "Everything on top of that will be a bonus. With that number of yachts we can speak of approximately one thousand sailing enthusiasts visiting the Roomassaare harbour and Saaremaa harbour," Rallmann said.

The biggest of the vessels to take part in Tall Ships Race 2013 are too big to berth at Roomassaare, the port situated near Saaremaa's main city Kuressaare. The biggest of the vessels will approach Saaremaa from the West while for the smaller ones organisers have recommended to sail in procession via the Big Strait, the passage between the mainland and the Muhu/Saaremaa islands.

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