The winning yacht in the 2011-12 Volvo Ocean Race is in town stationed at Tauranga Bridge Marina ready to be put in race trim for an assault on the Coastal Classic and Sydney Hobart.

'It's just come off the ship from France. She's here for a repaint, a few modifications and to be commissioned with a view to the first race being the coastal classic,” says boat captain Steve Cotton.

Volvo Ocean Race boat, Groupama at Bridge Marina.

The former Groupama 4, sporting new paint featuring a New Zealand flag design, will race in the Coastal Classic which starts October 25.

'It's an amazing paint job.”

The former Groupama, now owned by Jim Delegate, is expected to be up against other former Volvo Ocean Race boats during the 2013 Sydney Hobart race. The entire Volvo Ocean race fleet was made redundant with a design change declared mid-way through the last race.

The Volvo open 70 is built to a set of design rules, similar to the design and construction rules that define a racing car. Competing teams design and build boats within the scope of this rule to try and come up with the fastest boat for the expected conditions of the race.

Designers making choices to favour speed over safety resulted in some breakages and safety concerns being expressed. That, and cost issues, saw Volvo Ocean Race CEO, and four time competitor, Knut Frostad announcing the new Farr designed Open 65 in June 2012 during a race stop over.

Launched in May 2011, Groupama 4 is designed by the Franco-Argentinean architect Juan Kouyoumdjian, and built at the multiplast yard in Vannes. It is equipped with a mast manufactured at Lorima in Lorient.

French team 'Groupama” was the overall winner of the Volvo Ocean Race 2011-2012, beating the New Zealand boat Camper and American entry Puma.

The Former Volvo open 70 is not the only round the world racer to enter this year's Sydney Hobart. The entire fleet of 12 Clipper 70s will be racing Sydney Hobart as part of the Clipper Round the World race. The Clipper Round the World fleet made Tauranga a port call in November 2011.