America's Cup Challengers gather in Valencia

by Sail-World/GJN on 27 Feb 2006 America’s Cup Challengers have resumed training in preparation for the opening events of the Valencia Louis Vuitton Acts on 11 May 2006.

Nine yachts so far have been built or are being built under the new Version 5 rules for the next challenge, but reported comments of +39 helm, Iain Percy have put their challenge in doubt - see team update detail below.

Under the Rules of the event, the twelve teams of the 32nd America’s Cup are allowed to build up to two new boats over the course of the 32nd America’s Cup.

Each of the boats raced in 2005 have already measured in under the new Version 5 of the America’s Cup Class Rule, and thus could be eligible to sail in 2007.

However, under the Deed of Gift and Protocol, in 2007, each team must race a hull built in the country of their challenge. For new teams like United Internet Team Germany, China Team and Shosholoza, this means they must build new boats. Teams that own boats built in the country of their challenge are free to use those boats through 2007, however, for competitive reasons they are likely to build at least one, if not two, new boats.

The season for the America’s Cup Challengers opens with Act 10 on the 11 May with match races until 16 May. This is followed by Act 11 with fleet racing between the 19 and 21 May and then Act 12 is from 23 June to 3 July 2006.

Team updates:

1 - Defender Alinghi started work on their new boat SUI-91 at the Decision Boatyard in Vevey, Switzerland. This is the yard that built both SUI-64, the 2003 America’s Cup winning boat, and SUI-75, the ACC 2005 Championship winner. The aim is to have the boat ready for May. Meanwhile the sailing team have started match racing in Beneteau 7.5s in Valencia and will start two boat training at end of March.

2 - BMW Oracle Racing is back on the water with USA-76 after modifications and they took advantage of the rules to cover the cover the keel before launching. BMW Oracle has recruited two new sailors, completing the sailing team for the 2006 season: Jann Neergard and Guillermo Parada. Former Alinghi team member Jann Neergaard of Denmark joins as mast/grinder and Guillermo Parada of Argentina (photo) joins the afterguard.

‘Inside Alinghi’ on Eurosport has been postponed due to the Winter Olympic Games and will be back on your screens on Wednesday 1 March with our own skiing story of the designers racing a 24hour skiing race in Villars, Switzerland.

3 - Emirates Team New Zealand launched their new boat, NZL-84 last December in Auckland, New Zealand and this is being transported to Valencia. They have been trialling the new boat against NZL-81on the Hauraki Gulf. NZL81 is the yacht which was flown to Valencia to replace NZL82 and which was seriously damaged when it was toppled by a storm in Marseille. NZL82 has been repaired and converted to Version 5 of the ACC rule and will race in Europe this summer. The team will build two 2007 generation yachts. Work on the second yacht will start later in 2006, with completion scheduled for the end of the year.

4 - Lunna Rossa have sailed ITA-74 in February. Their new boat number is ITA-86.

5 - Desafio Espanol 2007, the Spanish A/C team launched both ESP-65 and ESP-67 for training in early February. Their new boat ESP-88 is under construction.

6 - +39 have been sailing ITA-59 and on Tuesday (21 Feb) were out training with the Mascalzone Latino - Capitalia Team. Their new boat number is ITA-85 possibly due March but a report in the Daily Telegraph on Saturday 25 February, claimed that:

‘Iain Percy, the British Olympic gold medallist of 2000, hopes to find funds for the faltering Italian +39 America's Cup team in the UK. He aims to find financial backing for the Italian team for the next Cup in 2007, and also initiate interest in a possible British campaign.’

And that;

‘Work on +39's one new boat has ceased, and the sailing team, headed by Percy, have not been paid for more than four months.’

There is much British involvement in this team - Iain Percy, Andrew Simpson and Ian Walker – which is possibly contributing to the persistent rumours of a switch to an English takeover of the challenge.

7 - Sweden’s Victory Challenge seems to have survived a funding crisis and is starting work on further modifying SWE-63 and SWE-73 at Killian Bushe in Goteborg and planning of a new boat. All being well with the funding they will resume sailing in March in Valencia. Although they still have to find a replacement for helmsman Sten Mohr, who has joined BMW Oracle.

8 - K-Challenge, the French Team has returned to its base in Gandia, Spain. The shore team continues to work on FRA-60, the boat with which the team had great success in the Trapani Louis Vuitton Act 8, with victories against Alinghi and Emirates Team New Zealand. The boat will undergo new modifications in order to further optimize its performance. K-Challenge will race the 2006 season with FRA-60 while the team’s new boat will be under construction.

The design team, led by Dimitri Nicolopoulos and architect Bernard Nivelt, is currently polishing up plans for the new boat, with construction to be started very soon. Over the next few weeks, the team has scheduled a set of tests to validate the last few elements needed for the design of the new boat.

9 - Mascalzone Latino - Capitalia Team have sailed ITA-77 (Feb 13) there trial boat. They have also been training for four weeks in the Canary Islands. The new M/L boat will sail in early spring.

10 - Team Shoshloza of South Africa has a new skipper, Mark Sadler (Geoff Meek steps down) and Dee Smith joins the team as Team Manager, Coach and Tactician. They already have a new boat RSA-83, launched last May and used in racing in 2005.

11 - United Internet Team Germany have GER-72 and with new boat number 89 in build in Being built at the shipyard Knierim-Yachtbau in Kiel, Germany. The boat is expected to be launched in April, displaying the sail number GER-89.

Next week will see the United Internet Team Germany resume its programme full scale. On Monday and Tuesday (27/28 February), the team will be available for film shootings of Team BMW Oracle Racing for an image video. There will also be a new opportunity to determine their athletic capacity when on Wednesday and Thursday the United Internet Team Germany will hold another joint training session with the Italian Mascalzone Latino Team Capitalia. A sparring session with +39 Challenge on Friday will conclude the week’s activities.

12 - China Team is preparing the old FRA-79, now CHN-79 to v5 status and this is the boat they will use in 2006 events. They have plans for their Base at Port America which they revealed on Chinese New Year (31 Jan). The base is planned to be up and running for Acts 10 starting 11 May.