Bayview Yacht Club hosts inaugural Detroit Cup

by Luiz E. Kah on 26 Apr 2008 Top-ranked match racing sailors from six countries will visit southeast Michigan from May 8 - 11, to compete in the inaugural Bayview Yacht Club International Match Race for the Detroit Cup, it was announced today.

The May 8-11 event, sponsored by Toyota Motor Company, will be sailed on Bayview's club owned fleet of Ultimate 20 sailboats and is one of the three most prestigious match racing events in North America in 2008 as measured by the International Sailing Federation grading criteria.

Given the importance of the regatta, the private yacht club is inviting members of the general public who are sailing fans to watch the race from the club. Several thousand people are expected to attend the international regatta. Detroit is well known for automotive and hydroplane racing and its status as a leading sailing venue is becoming more widely noted.

'This event represents Bayview's commitment to match racing and solidifies our club's reputation as the home to world class sailing in the Great Lakes,' said BYC Commodore Timothy LaRiviere. 'Our members sail competitively around the world and we once again welcome these champion sailors from all ports to Detroit.' In the past two years, Bayview has hosted 10 match racing events including the U.S. Women's Match Racing Championships and the Richardson Cup, the Great Lakes Match Racing Championship.

Competitors for the 2008 Detroit Cup and their international ranking include: Victor Lanier, of France, 11th; Andrey Arbuzov, of Russia, 15th; Simon Minoprio, of New Zealand, 26th; Chris Van Tol, of Grosse Pointe Park, Mich., 31st and the top U.S. skipper; Brian Angel, of Manhattan Beach, Calif., 37th; Adam Minoprio, of New Zealand, 43rd; Dave Perry, of Southport, Conn., 44th; Juan Ignacio Grimaldi, of Argentina, 53rd; and Simone Ferrarese, of Italy, 54th. A 10th skipper will qualify by winning the 2008 BYC Spring Match Racing Invitational to be sailed April 19-20.

'It's an exciting, aggressive form of sailing that is fun to watch,' said Sandi Svoboda, Detroit Cup event chair who has competed internationally in women's and open match racing events. Ms. Svoboda is also a member of Bayview Yacht Club.

'Toyota is proud to sponsor an international regatta of this stature in Detroit,' said John McCandless, National Manager for Public Relations. 'We have made a significant investment in Michigan and support the communities in which we do business.'

Match racing is the format for the America's Cup, where just two boats race at a time. Competitors compete in a round-robin format, earning points for each win to determine the overall winner. Match Races are monitored by on- the-water umpires in Race Committee boats who instantaneously assess penalties for rule infractions.

The sailing authority, ISAF, uses skippers' rankings, the variety of competitors' nationalities and the credentials of race officials to determine a match race regatta's status, which in turn determines how many points skippers receive toward their international ranking points based on their finishes. The more prestigious the event, the more points they receive to better their standing.

Bayview Yacht Club www.byc.com
Official event web site: www.detroitcup.com