Panel adjourns, earliest decision Monday

by Keith Taylor on 9 Dec 2002 The America’s Cup Arbitration Panel adjourned tonight after two days of hearings into an application for disqualification of the Seattle Yacht Club’s OneWorld Challenge for improper possession and use of other syndicates’ design
information.

The five senior jurists who make up the Panel will meet tomorrow
morning as they consider the merits of the application by the New
York Yacht Club and the Yacht Club Punta Ala. For the last two days
the Panel has heard cross-examination of witnesses for both sides,
ending with lengthy summations this afternoon. Although a decision
is possible tomorrow, it might take several days.

Notwithstanding the possibility of a finding against OneWorld
Challenge, the first races in the Semi Finals of the Louis Vuitton
Cup competition to decide the challenger for the America’s Cup will
start tomorrow at 1:00 PM local time, weather permitting.

The Seattle Yacht Club’s OneWorld is slated to sail against the
Punta Ala Yacht Club’s Luna Rossa. In the other match, the Swiss
challenger Alinghi will race the Oracle BMW Racing’s USA-76 from
the San Francisco Yacht Club.

In a separate action, a protest by Team Dennis Conner’s Stars &
Stripes against OneWorld under the Unfair Sailing Rule is scheduled
to start at 6:00 PM tomorrow before the International Jury. The
protest is linked to the case before the Panel and is contingent on
its outcome. The hearing is expected to be delayed until the Panel
reaches a decision.

OneWorld’s counsel Ian Thain acknowledged to the Panel today that
Ian Mitchell, one of its designers, had a backup computer zip disk
with design information from Team New Zealand in his possession in
violation of the Protocol governing the conduct of the Louis
Vuitton Cup and the America’s Cup. He submitted it was a minor
offence.

James Farmer, QC, for the applicants, said OneWorld had tried to
recreate the benchmark that Team New Zealand had reached at the end
of the last America’s Cup. OneWorld had done this by hiring Team
New Zealand members and encouraging them to recreate the New
Zealand designs as the springboard for its own design efforts.

While it awaits the outcome of the two cases, the crew of Team
Dennis Conner’s Stars & Stripes has continued training and boat
preparation to race in the coming series, in the event of a
disqualification of OneWorld.

For additional coverage on the Official Louis Vuitton Cup web site,
read “Arbitration Panel Starts Its Deliberations”
http://www.louisvuittoncup.yahoo.com/story1313.html
and “International Jury Set To Hear Rule Two Protest”
http://www.louisvuittoncup.yahoo.com/story1302.html

Team Dennis Conner and the New York Yacht Club have partnered to
put forth the finest team of American designers, sailors, boat
builders and shore side support to win America’s Cup XXXI and
return the America’s Cup to the United States. The America’s Cup
season began on October 1, 2002 with a four-month challenger
elimination series known as the Louis Vuitton Cup. The winner of
the Louis Vuitton Cup will challenge Team New Zealand for the right
to defend the America’s Cup in a best of nine series starting on
February 15, 2003.

Team Dennis Conner's platinum sponsor, Computer Associates
International, Inc. (NYSE: CA) delivers the software that manages
eBusiness. As the world’s third largest enterprise software
company, CA provides industry-leading integrated solutions through
strategic partnerships and powerful brands such as Unicenter®,
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AllFusion™. With mission-critical software in security and
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information, visit www.ca.com.

Gold sponsors of the Team Dennis Conner America's Cup challenge
include Citizen Watch Company (www.citizenwatch.com), proud maker
of the new Eco-Drive Sailhawk, the official Stars & Stripes team
watch, the ACE Group of Companies (www.acelimited.com), a premier
global insurance and reinsurance organization, Airgas, Inc.
(www.airgas.com), the largest U.S. distributor of industrial,
medical and specialty gases, welding, safety and related products.
With an integrated network of nearly 800 locations
nationwide--including branches, retail stores, gas fill plants,
specialty gas labs, production facilities and distribution
centers--Airgas' national scale and strong local presence offer
customers a competitive advantage and Bugatti
(www.bugatti-auto.com), a legendary name in the automobile
industry. The Bugatti EB 16.4 Veyron is the newest product in the
Bugatti family and boasts a top speed of 406 km/h and the ability
to accelerate from a standstill to 300 km/h in under 14 seconds.
The Bugatti EB 16.4 Veyron will be introduced in the United States
during a special tour with Team Dennis Conner next year.

Team Dennis Conner’s Silver sponsors are Nautica (www.nautica.com),
the team’s official apparel sponsor and a leading global fashion
and lifestyle company with products ranging from men's, women's and
children's sportswear, denim and accessories to a complete home
collection, Manugistics (www.manugistics.com), a leading software
company that provides comprehensive solutions which enable
companies to share inventory, pricing and planning information with
customers and suppliers over the Internet and Viagra
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breakthrough oral treatment for erectile dysfunction that has been
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ongoing clinical studies. Viagra has been approved by regulatory
authorities in 119 countries around the world and is among the most
widely prescribed medications, with over 120 million prescriptions
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Team Dennis Conner’s Suppliers are 3M, Air New Zealand, Airgas,
Airtech, APL Limited, Arc Second, Bathysphere Digital Media
Services, Columbus Line, Digi International, Dupont, Earth Tech,
Itronix, Lewmar Marine, McLube, Media Bin, Munters, Nautica
Eyewear, New England Ropes, Newport Adhesives & Composites,
Omnisonics Medical, Pacer Technologies, Parker, Plastimo,
Protector, Remy Amerique, Saucony, WiTango and Xygent.