Sport, Culture , Craic and now Clowns. Galway Volvo Ocean Race promises to be two weeks of fun for all the family when the Volvo ocean fleet sail in to Galway Bay on May 22 and with the inclusion of Circus Gerbola and the Galway Community Circus to the line up the city is sure to come alive with mischief and madness as the circus opens its tent to all aspiring clowns and acrobats.

From May 21 to June 1, Galway Community Circus, in conjunction with the renowned Irish Circus Gerbola will host unique workshops open to visitors to the Galway Volvo Ocean Race. Designed for all ages these workshops offer a range of circus skills and are sure to produce acrobatic adolescents, juggling geriatrics and amusement for all involved.

Free of charge the workshops are a rare opportunity to learn first hand from skilled circus artists with Juggling, Diablo, Unicycling, Acrobatics and much, much more on offer.

During the weekends of the Stopover the workshops will be open to the public with the weekday sessions allocated to primary and secondary school children, and youth clubs. This fantastic opportunity is expected to be in high demand and booking is advised.

Over 200,000 vistors are expected to converge on the city over the two week festival which runs from May 23-June 6. The festival program is comprised of over 100 acts- ranging from music to art, dance and street entertainers, and with all acts and events free of charge, the Galway Volvo Ocean Race Stopover will be the biggest festival to hit Ireland in 2009.