The citizens of Piraeus will wake up to a unique sight on September 3, as they will witness the white sails of one of the largest and fastest tall ships in the world entering the city’s port. The Argentine Navy training Frigate ‘Libertad’ will moor in the Piraeus port celebrating the 200th anniversary of Argentina’s independence and as a sign of friendship between the two countries. The visit in Greece will last from September 3 to 7 and is the vessel’s 13 port stop in 10 countries in its 196-day long journey. The voyage, the ship’s 45th instruction voyage, started back in April when the Libertad departed from Buenos Aires to dock in ports in Brazil, the USA, Holland, France and Italy, before its scheduled itinerary continuing on to Spain and finally reach its final destination in Brazil and Argentina. The Libertad is scheduled to stay in the port of Piraeus till September 7 before it departs for the port of Hydra. During its stay in Piraeus, the captain, Ignacio Errecaborde and his 350 crew (20% of which are women) will receive the Greek public daily from 2pm to 6pm. The program includes protocolar visits on the morning of September 3, cultural visits and friendly sports matches between the two countries’ cadets. During its visit to Hydra a tribute will be paid to Greek-born sailors Samuel Spiro and Nicholas Jorge (Kolmaniatis) who fought in Argentina’s war of independence 2 centuries ago.
Built in 1956 and commissioned in 1963, Frigate A.R.A. “Libertad” has a length of 103.70 metres and 27 sails. Her figurehead represents the Republic and its rooted sense of liberty. More than 11.000 navy officers have been trained on board. Since 1963, the “Ambassador of the Seas” as she has been designated, has covered over 800.000 nautical miles and visited over 500 ports in 60 countries. In 2008 she toured around the world for the fourth time in its history. The last time Frigate A.R.A “Libertad” visited Greece was almost 20 years ago, in 1997. She has been internationally awarded and has won a number of important trophies, including the Great Medal in 1966; she also set the world record for the fastest North Atlantic crossing –which still stands to this day– covering 2,058 miles from Cape Race (Canada) to the Dublin/Liverpool line in just eight days and 12 hours.