Steinlager Cup feeder features skippers old & new

by Shawn McBride on 15 Mar 2002 The Swedish Match Tour's Steinlager Line 7 Cup, March 19-24, Auckland, NZ is preceded by a feeder series featuring 10 skippers battling to be among the top four to advance to the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron-managed Grade 1 event. Among the competitors in the feeder series, running March 14-17, are five skippers representing four America’s Cup teams.

Great Britain’s GBR Challenge has two teams entered in the feeder series. Andy Green, ranked 33rd in the ISAF world match race rankings will helm one of the entries
and Ian Walker will lead the second. Walker's crew will include Andy Beadsworth, himself a regular competitor on the Swedish Match Tour.

Paolo Cian of Vincente Onorato’s Mascalzone Latino Challenge also will compete. With the recent arrival of the Onorato Challenge to Auckland, Cian plans to
become a regular on the Swedish Match Tour. Jesper Bank of the Victory Challenge will also field an entry. Bank’s Victory Challenge teammate Magnus Holmberg is
the top-seed in the Steinlager Line 7 Cup.

Rounding out the America’s Cup team involvement in the feeder series is Team New Zealand’s Cameron Appleton. Appleton has had much success at the Steinlager
Line 7 Cup, finishing third in 2001 and as runner-up in 2000. Should Appleton advance to the Steinlager Line 7 Cup he will join Team New Zealand leader Dean Barker
and give the America’s Cup holders two entries in the regatta.

Among the remaining entries in the feeder series, two America’s Cup veterans, American Ed Baird and Great Britain’s Chris Law will be lining up for the chance to
advance. Baird, most recently skipper of Young America at the 2000 Louis Vuitton Cup is following up on a third place finish at last October’s Colorcraft Gold Cup in
Bermuda. Law is a noted international sailor and former color analyst for TV New Zealand’s coverage of the 1995 and 2000 America’s Cup.

Also competing are Johnie Berntsson of Sweden, ranked 22nd in the world, Australian Pat Langley, ranked 52nd in the world, and native New Zealander John
Kensington.

For more information on the Swedish Match Tour visit www.swedishmatchtour.com.

About the Swedish Match Tour

The Swedish Match Tour is comprised of eight of the world's leading professional sailing events and is proving to be the ultimate battleground of sailing.
In addition to more than US$400,000 in individual event prize money, the Swedish Match Tour awards US$200,000 to the top eight sailors on the Swedish Match
Tour, with the first-place skipper netting US$60,000.
In addition to a US$60,000 first prize, the winner of the Swedish Match Tour receives the official Swedish Match Tour Championship Trophy, 15' (30 cm) high
with 22 carat gold gilding, produced by Swedish Match Tour sponsor Wedgwood. Additionally, Wedgwood supplies runner-up prizes for second and third places
as well as commemorative plaques to each event organizer.
The Swedish Match Tour produces 144 hours of television coverage reaching more than 330 million households worldwide.
Swedish Match Tour partners include Swedish Match, Octagon and the Match Race Association.

For additional information on the Swedish Match Tour log on to www.swedishmatchtour.com.