A spokesman for Team New Zealand has denied any involvement or relationship with the group said to be organising an alternative monohull competition to the 34th America’s Cup.
The story, first published in a Spanish newspaper has been doing the rounds in Europe and USA, and names four teams as being involved – Sir Keith Mills (TeamOrigin), Ernesto Bertarelli (Alinghi), Patrizio Bertelli (Luna Rossa Prada) and Grant Dalton (New Zealand Team ).
The story was dismissed by Team New Zealand as being many months old, and predated the announcements by Oracle Racing and the Defender of the America’s Cup as to the venue and other basics associated with the 34th America’s Cup.
The concept was that the AC90 genre of yachts, devised by Alinghi in conjunction with the Challengers (during 2009) would be used for the new competition.
There has been no published comment from the other teams involved.
The first two (Alinghi and Team Origin) have said they will not compete in the 34th America’s Cup. Luna Rossa have not made a statement of intent either way. Team New Zealand have indicated they are doing due diligence and trying to raise sufficient finance and sponsorship to mount a credible campaign for the 2013 Match.
Luna Rossa and Team New Zealand have entered the 2011 Extreme 40 series to be conducted in 40ft catamarans, as have Alinghi who are one of the principals of that circuit. TeamOrigin are believed to be competing on the Audi MedCup circuit to be sailed in TP52 monohulls n 2011
San Francisco has been selected as the host venue for the 34th America’s Cup. An official celebration event will be hosted in San Francisco on January 5th, event location details to be announced.
“We sought a venue that fulfills our promise – to showcase the best sailors in the world competing on the fastest boats,” said Richard Worth, Chairman, America’s Cup Event Authority. “And hosting the America’s Cup in San Francisco will realize that promise.“
“We thank Mayor Newsom, Board President Chiu, Supervisor Mirkarimi and all of the Board of Supervisors, the staff at City Hall and the Port Authority, Mark Buell and San Francisco America’s Cup Organizing Committee, and all who have worked so diligently on securing the bid,” Worth continued. “We look forward to working closely with City of San Francisco over the coming months to create a world-class America’s Cup event, and a large and lasting beneficial impact on the City.”
San Francisco officially won the honor of hosting the 34th America’s Cup in 2013 after a brief showdown with Newport over the past two weeks. The event will purportedly inject over $1 billion dollars into the state’s economy, in addition to creating thousands of jobs. Newport’s roots as a yachting community run deep, as does its rich tradition of hosting the America’s Cup. Before 1983, which was the last America’s Cup to be held here, Newport hosted the event for 50 years. Bringing back the America’s Cup, which is an internationally acclaimed and prestigious sporting event, would have impacted the entire Newport community, so it’s no surprise that many local business owners were disappointed to hear the news. Likewise, Newport residents, many of whom recall fond memories of past America’s Cup races, are disappointed as well. Here’s what some Newport and Aquidneck Island residents said: “It’s unfortunate. It would have been good for Newport and they deserve it.”? – Robert Sahms, Portsmouth Resident “I used to have a restaurant on Goat Island called Marina Pub. I can remember the day of the last race of the 1983 Cup, when Dennis Conner was at the helm of the Liberty. If he lost then all was lost, I thought. On the special board at my restaurant, I wrote ‘Give me Liberty, or give me DEBT.’ It has been that way since the Cup left. The Cup summers were such a lucrative time and it just hasn’t been the same since it left.” – Greg Gamon, Newport Resident “I’m sorry that it isn’t coming here. I feel it would have brought some jobs. I would have liked to see it here.” – Marian Royer, Portsmouth Resident “The America’s Cup would have undoubtedly helped our economy. The America’s Cup should be coming back here — San Francisco doesn’t need the event; they always have major events, so I don’t see that having the America’s Cup would feel as important to them. It belongs back in Newport. I was pretty young the last time it was here, but I do remember that I was out on a boat and everyone was really into it. At the time, I didn’t quite understand why everyone was crying when it ended. Since then, the sailing community has dropped. It just isn’t what it used to be and I think bringing the Cup back would bring some sailing roots back as well.” – Chef Tyler Cullen, of Norey’s Restaurant on Broadway
For the fourth consecutive year, the Audi MedCup Circuit, the world’s leading regatta circuit, returns to Portugal. The Audi MedCup Circuit is the world’s leading regatta circuit. The Circuit is made up of five events that take place over five months in four countries over southern Europe.
The most hard fought and closely matched circuit featuring the cutting edge TP52 and GP42 Series will compete between the 11th and the 16th of May, for the Portugal Trophy at the first Audi MedCup Circuit of 2010.
After three very successful years in the Algarve, the Portuguese stage of the Audi MedCup Circuit visits Cascais.
The only Audi MedCup event on the waters of the Atlantic will take place at a world class sailing venue, which has hosted many World and European Championships including the 2007 ISAF Sailing World Championships.
2010 OPENING EVENT: AN EXTRA INCENTIVE The Portugal Trophy will be the first of the five events which comprise the Audi MedCup Circuit this season. As the curtain raiser for for the 2010 season, Cascais will be the first venue to feature the modified TP52, which has undergone key changes which were designed to enhance the performance of this already exciting, demanding class. Emirates Team New Zealand (TP52) and Islas Canarias Puerto Calero ( GP42), the Audi MedCup 2009 winners, will try to carry on their winning momentum into the new season, starting in Cascais:
Nacho Postigo (ESP) Audi MedCup Circuit director commented: “We are seeing a rise in the level of the competition and the quality this year, particularly due to the three new America’s Cup entries. Cascais is getting the sailors nervous, many know the race area from previous events and realise that they will need to very agile to control the boat. The boats are more powerful with the modifications that have been introduced since last year. The changes have made the boats faster and that is what you have to control with one less crew member. It is guaranteed to be quite a spectacle and I encourage all the people in the region of Lisbon to come and enjoy all this in Cascais.”
“Last year’s fleet was difficult to beat. The teams improved race by race. In 2010, three new teams, TeamORIGIN, ALL4ONE and Luna Rossa,will make things even more difficult for us. We didn’t have much time to train on our modified NZL380 and we are looking forward to coming to Cascais, so that we can test our performance level with the rest of the fleet”, says Grant Dalton, CEO of Emirates Team New Zealand.
Ten TP52 and five GP42 have registered for the Portugal Trophy, among them a total of two America’s Cup crews new to the Audi MedCup Circuit: Britain’s TeamORIGIN and Italy’s Luna Rossa, which has Brasilians Torben Grael and Robert Scheidt on board, two of the world’s most important sailors, who have a very good knowledge of the race area of Cascais.
The host nation Portugal will be represented by Bigamist 7, of Pedro Mendonça. The Portuguese TP52 was the circuit’s revelation in 2009, after eight race wins and climbing on to the podium in the last event, Cartagena.
In the Audi MedCup 2010, after being modified, she is expected to improve last year’s performance and be fighting for the final success.
SUPPORT OF INSTITUTIONS
Beyond the cut and thrust of the action on the water, the Portugal Trophy has been consistently acclaimed for the organization, infrastructure and glamour ashore. Such values are keynote to the Lagos Sports brand, the event organizer together with the Clube Naval of Cascais, the Marina of Cascais, and World Sailing Management with the support of Turismo de Portugal and Turismo Estoril/Camara Municipal of Cascais.
BAY OF CASCAIS: THE SHOW GOES ON The Portuguese event of the Audi MedCup 2010 starts competition on the Tuesday 11th of May and runs until the Sunday the 16th. Each day up to three races will be held, as well as a spectacular coastal race scheduled for Saturday, the 15th: the fleet starts from Cascais heading to Cabo da Roca towards Cabo Espichel, and heads back to Lisbon where it turns at Ponte 25 of Abril to reach the finish off Cascais.
The competition will be based in the Marina of Cascais and includes a Race Village, a Press Room, the Race Office of Clube Nacional of Cascais and an area in the Bay of Cascais which will allow visitors a live and exciting experience of the event, with a big screen which will relay racing with live images enhanced by the virtual tracking system, as well as leisure activities, a merchandising area and food and beverage options.
The New York Supreme Court today ruled that the 33rd America’s Cup, scheduled in February 2010, must take place in a venue in the Southern Hemisphere as per the strict reading of the competition’s governing document, the Deed of Gift, or in Valencia, Spain, as the only exception to that rule.
“This is a disappointing result as we were certain that Justice Cahn’s May 2008 decision allowed the Defender to chose Valencia or ‘any other location’,” said Lucien Masmejan, Société Nautique de Genève (SNG) legal counsel. “Ras Al Khaimah has put enormous time and effort into this 33rd America’s Cup project. We thank them and feel sorry for this unexpected result out of the New York court”.
“We are satisfied, however, as Justice Kornreich confirmed that the Deed of Gift Match will be conducted under SNG rules as she had already ruled in a previous court order,” added Lucien Masmejan.
The America’s Cup Defender, Alinghi, and its yacht club, the Société Nautique de Genève, today announced the venue for the 33rd America’s Cup in February 2010.
“We are pleased to announce that Ras Al Khaimah, in the United Arab Emirates, will be the Host Country for the 33rd America’s Cup,” said Fred Meyer, Vice-Commodore of the Société Nautique de Genève (SNG). “This is a venue that offers perfect weather and great sailing conditions for a Match in February; the authorities have shown tremendous interest in, and support for, hosting the America’s Cup; and the country has experience in organising first-class sporting events such as ATP tennis, PGA golf and Formula One. They will make a purpose-built island available at the Al Hamra Village in Ras al-Khaimah to provide the America’s Cup teams, sponsors and fans with an outstanding venue.”
Having won the 32nd America’s Cup in 2007 in Valencia with its yacht racing team Alinghi, the SNG is granted the right to choose the venue for the next America’s Cup which is scheduled to start on 8 February 2010.
“Our absolute priorities in making this decision are the prevailing weather conditions and the resulting safety that they bring to both teams,” explains Alinghi skipper Brad Butterworth. “We looked everywhere for a venue that suited having good racing for the Match dates in February. We had trained in the UAE in the winter with Alinghi before and in the end we settled on Ras al-Khaimah in particular because of the infrastructure in Al Hamra Village and because it has a great building sea breeze during the day, similar to Mediterranean conditions in the summer, making it good for these boats and safe for all concerned.”
His Highness Sheikh Saud Bin Saqr Al Qasimi, Crown Prince of Ras al-Khaimah, expresses his satisfaction: “It is a great moment for us to host the America’s Cup here. It is significant because it reflects how the Emirates have become a place for hosting international events. It is a reflection on what we have achieved in terms of becoming the destination for tourists and trade and industry and is a reflection of our integration in the world at large. This announcement reflects the nature of our country and its aim of becoming host to many nationalities who live side by side in peace. It is a hope and dream that this is the kind of space that we want to have on our globe. It is a great moment for us to host this prestigious event and to welcome all the sports people to the UAE and to Ras al-Khaimah to watch this great event; we are looking forward its success.”
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