Photo, ©Ivo Rovira, 2008 for Alinghi
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – “Tremendous arrogance and lack of respect for the teams involved” is the way Geneva-based Alinghi is referring to the announcement Monday by Oracle BMW that it will not participate in the 33rd America’s Cup sailing race but will instead continue to fight Alinghi in the courts.
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - A meeting of 11 teams, or “challengers” for the America’s Cup sailing trophy, held at the Société Nautique de Genève Thursday, appears to be moving the next America’s Cup, embroiled by lawsuits, closer to the water.
Madrid, Spain (GenevaLunch) – Alinghi’s president, Ernesto Bertarelli, and skipper Brad Butterworth, are taking the first steps with the Société Nautique de Genève (SNG) towards organizing the 33rd America’s Cup.
BMW Oracle 90 foot trimaran, sea trials in Washington, USA, in September 2008. Photographer: Gilles Martan-Raget
San Francisco, USA and Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – The Golden Gate Yacht Club (GGYC) has formally offered to end the months-old litigation in US courts against the Société Nautique de Genève (SNG), home to Alinghi, if the SNG will accept a multi-hull race under rules similar to those of the 2007 America’s Cup and with GGYC sailing in the race.
Update July 2009 New York, NY, USA (GenevaLunch) - The Challenger of the Record for the 33rd America’s Cup sailing race is now the GGYC (Golden Gate Yachting Club) in San Francisco, following a ruling by a judge in New York Tuesday that disqualified the Valencia-based Club Náutico Español de Vela (CNEV).
Photo, Ivo Rivero 2007, Alinghi, Dubai November 2007. Reprinted with permission.
The Spanish club had been named as the Challenger of the Record by Alinghi, the Swiss-based team that won the 32nd race in July 2007, and Valencia was selected as the home for the next race. The America’s Cup is the top event in the sailing world.
Today’s ruling is based on a technicality, that the CNEV had not held its annual regatta before becoming the Challenger of Record, Michel Hodara, chief operating officer of ACM (America’s Cup Management), which oversees the races, told GenevaLunch. Alinghi’s choice was hotly contested from the start by BMW Oracle, which was not the challenger for the 2007 race.
Emirates Team New Zealand was the Challenger of Record in July 2007, having won the Louis Vuitton race series against several other competitors. Alinghi defeated Emirates 5-2 in a very close set of races.
The judge’s decision is a blow to the Société Nautique de Genève (SNG), the yacht club that is home to Alinghi. The SNG was taken to court in August by BMW Oracle, whose home is the GGYC in California.
