America's Cup - Artemis Racing emerging as Cup favorites

by Bernie Wilson AP on 29 Apr 2017 Out on Bermuda's Great Sound, on a fast catamaran named Magic Blue, Iain Percy and his mates with Artemis Racing are emerging as contenders to win the America's Cup while honoring the memory of Andrew 'Bart' Simpson, who was killed in a training accident four years ago.

Artemis is keeping Simpson in mind while quickly finding the sea legs it didn't get the chance to develop in the 2013 regatta.

There's a 'Bart' ribbon on the wing sail that helps powered the space-age catamaran and Simpson's family recently visited the team's base.

'It's nice to have that link,' said team leader and tactician Iain Percy of Britain, who was a childhood friend of Simpson's before they sailed together in two Olympics, winning gold and silver medals. 'Overall I think it gives a good reminder there are more important things, but that at the same time we want to honor this team by having a win.'

Swedish-based Artemis has been sailing so well in practice races that some observers believe it has a strong chance to emerge from the challenger fleet and face two-time defending champion Oracle Team USA in the 35th America's Cup starting June 17.

Even getting to this point is a remarkable comeback from one of the worst moments in the long history of the America's Cup.

Simpson was killed on May 9, 2013, when Artemis' 72-foot catamaran broke apart on a training run on San Francisco Bay. Artemis chose to remain in the 34th America's Cup, although it missed much of the challenger trials in the 2 1/2 months it took to ready its new boat. When it made it to the starting line, Artemis was swept in four races by Italy's Luna Rossa.

'That was the first time I competed in a sporting competition not for sporting reasons,' said Percy, who won an Olympic gold medal in 2000 before teaming with Simpson for the 2008 and 2012 Games. 'We did it because we were a team that had been through something horrific. We didn't want that to be the defining factor of the campaign. By working really hard to get a boat strong enough to get out there and compete, it was a degree of a new dawn for the team.'

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