Vice-commodore Fred Mayer of the SNG, right, at 1 August arrival of Alinghi in Geneva. Alinghi President Ernesto Bertarelli, left and Swiss Foreign Minister Micheline Calmy-Rey. Image: © 2009 Guido Trombetta/Alinghi

Ras al-Khaimah, UAE, America's Cup venue 2010

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Update 3 10:35  Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – The next America’s Cup race, the top event in the sailing world, will be held starting 8 February 2010 in Ras al-Khaimah, in the United Arab Emirates, the Société Nautique de Genève (SNG) announced Wednesday morning 5 August. The SNG has the right to select the next race’s location, as the home club of Alinghi, holder of the America’s Cup.

“Our absolute priorities in making this decision are the prevailing weather conditions and the resulting safety that they bring to both [Ed. note: Alinghi and official challenger BMW Oracle] teams,” explains Alinghi skipper Brad Butterworth.

Al Hamra, Ras al-Khaimah, UAE

“We looked everywhere for a venue that suited having good racing for the Match dates in February. We had trained in the UAE in the winter with Alinghi before and in the end we settled on Ras al-Khaimah in particular because of the infrastructure in Al Hamra Village and because it has a great building sea breeze during the day, similar to Mediterranean conditions in the summer, making it good for these boats and safe for all concerned.”

The announcement was made by SNG’s vice commodore, Fred Mayer, who says the location “offers perfect weather and great sailing conditions for a Match in February; the authorities have shown tremendous interest in, and support for hosting the America’s Cup; and the country has experience in organizing first-class sporting events such as ATP tennis, PGA golf and Formula One.

Ras al-Khaimah, UAE, America's Cup venue 2010

“They will make a purpose-built island available at the Al Hamra Village in Ras al-Khaimah to provide the America’s Cup teams, sponsors and fans with an outstanding venue.”

The big question is now: will the other team show up? Alinghi and BMW Oracle have been involved in legal battles over the race since immediately after the last one, in July 2007.

Friday 7 August the new Alinghi 90-foot catamaran will leave Geneva for Genoa, where the crew will continue to test and train in the Mediterranean in coming weeks. The boat will be air-lifted by helicopter over the Saint Bernard pass into Italy and flown down to the coast.

The new location for the race has been in Swiss news in recent months because EPFL signed an agreement in February 2009 to open its first campus outside Switzerland on the island. The federal polytechnic institute in Lausanne has been a close partner of Alinghi since 2001, closely involved in building the Alinghi boats, including the newly unveiled Alinghi 5.

About Ras al-Khaimah (from America’s Cup)

Ras al-Khaimah literally means “the top of the tent” in Arabic. One of the seven emirates in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), it covers an area of 656 square miles (1,700km2) and borders on Oman, situated in the southern part of the Persian Gulf. The emirate has a population of approx 300,000 and is ruled by HH Sheikh Saqr bin Mohammad Al Qasimi. The Deputy Ruler is Crown Prince HH Sheikh Saud Bin Saqr Al Qasimi. The capital city of Ras al-Khaimah is located 45 minutes from Dubai airport and is also served by the Ras al-Khaimah International airport.

About Al Hamra Village

A 22-hectare purpose-built island inside the Al Hamra Village lagoon will host the team bases and all the necessary facilities for the media, the sponsors and the public. The Al Hamra Village is a new luxury resort with more than 3,500 residences on the coast of Ras al-Khaimah.

Related: “Allinghi, ahhh, what a beauty of a boat” 26 July 2009, GenevaLunch feature

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