Ernesto Bertarelli a rempli sa mission : remporter la coupe des Challengers !

Photo : F.Socha / www.francksocha.com

After almost a two-hour delay due to light winds, Coutts started work early, luring Oracle BMW helmsman Peter Holmberg into a pre-start penalty. With that early advantage, Coutts was content to wait patiently for an opportunity later in the race to make a pass, and that eventually came near the top of the second beat, when Oracle BMW skipper Chris Dickson elected not to cover.

The American boat sailed into a light patch and what had been a 150-metre lead quickly evaporated as the Swiss team charged in from the right. Now holding the lead at the second top mark, Coutts and his team protected ferociously the rest of the way, and sailed on to victory.

When the wind eventually filled in early in the afternoon, the weather was perfect for the coronation of a champion, with sunny skies and a light sea breeze blessing the Hauraki Gulf. On past performance, the lighter conditions would seem to have favoured the American team, setting up what would become a classic match race. On the final run, the Americans actually regained the lead with some smart tactics and a nice wind shift. However just before the finishing line, in an effort to engage Alinghi and offload the penalty, they surrendered it again, going down fighting to the end.

With a weekend armada of over 600 spectator boats surrounding the race course, the Alinghi Team crossed the finish line ahead of its American rival to a cacophony of cow’s bells and ship’s horns, securing a 5 -1 series victory and the Louis Vuitton Cup.

The trophy will be presented to the team in a public ceremony at Auckland’s Viaduct Basin when the boat returns to port after the race. Many of the Alinghi crew were with Coutts when he first won the Louis Vuitton in 1995, but for seven sailors on the race crew today, this will be their first taste of Moët & Chandon champagne from the Louis Vuitton Cup.

With the win, the Swiss Alinghi Team, assembled by Ernesto Bertarelli, earns the right to Challenge Team New Zealand for the America’s Cup America's Cup #AmericasCup beginning on February 15th. For the second time in a row, there will be no American boat in the America’s Cup America's Cup #AmericasCup .

Le tromphe d’une équipe suisse aux couleurs internationales

Photo : F.Socha / www.francksocha.com

• ALINGHI (SUI-64) BEAT USA-76- DELTA 02:34
 Alinghi wins best-of-nine Final over Oracle BMW Racing 5 -1 to win the Louis Vuitton Cup

Starting in a light and shifty northerly sea breeze, Peter Holmberg at the helm of USA-76 entered from the ’pin end’ a few seconds late and struggled to regain the initiative. After ducking the line, Holmberg entered a slow ’dial up’ and ended up well to weather of the start line, with Russell Coutts steering Alinghi close on her starboard side. USA-76 broke off the dial up first and started to run back to the line on starboard tack. Coutts in hot pursuit turned inside the American boat and followed close behind also on starboard. Holmberg attempted to gybe ahead of the Swiss boat, but there was not quite enough room and unfortunately for Oracle BMW, they were penalised by the Umpires, for infringing Rule 10 after their stern was judged too close to Alinghi’s bow.

Coutts broke off from further engagement resulting in a split start, with Oracle BMW starting at the ’pin’ and Alinghi wanting the right starting near the Race Committee boat. The boats split over eight hundred metres apart before Alinghi tacked over to the left. Dickson’s call for the left paid off after the Americans found slightly stronger wind and won the first cross, two boat lengths ahead of the Swiss. Dickson and Holmberg continued to control the first beat from the right hand side and rounded the first mark 15 seconds ahead, but still with a penalty outstanding.

Dickson’s team extended on the downwind leg, after executing a double dummy gybe, with the second one tricking Alinghi into a gybe on to starboard. Oracle continued on port gybe and found better wind to lead around the second mark by 28 seconds. The first half of the second beat again went Oracle BMW’s way ; at one stage the Americans pulling out a lead of 150 metres. But Alinghi tactician Brad Butterworth put his faith in the right and found extra wind pressure to dramatically close up on the final quarter of the leg and snatch the lead just before rounding the windward mark for the second time.

With Alinghi in the lead, Dickson’s team was really on the back foot and threw everything they could to shake off the close cover of the Swiss. The Oracle BMW crew sailed brilliantly to close up and roll Alinghi down the final run retaking the lead. Holmberg then slowed the boat down, trying to engage the Swiss to force a mistake and cancel out the penalty. But Coutts and Co. held their nerve, retook the lead just metres from the finish line, went on to win the Louis Vuitton Cup and sail into the America’s Cup Match against Team New Zealand.

5 à 1 : large victoire pour Alinghi... prochain adversaire : le Team New Zealand en Coupe de l’America à partir du 15 février

Photo : F.Socha / www.francksocha.com

ORACLE BMW Racing eliminated from Louis Vuitton Cup
 Source Oracle BMW Racing

The America’s Cup dream is over for ORACLE BMW Racing as the Swiss Alinghi syndicate defeated USA-76 to win the series 5-1 and advance to the America’s Cup match against Team New Zealand. After a close and tense final race, ORACLE BMW Racing was on the back-foot from the start having incurred a penalty in the pre-start manoeuvrings. USA-76, led by skipper Chris Dickson fought back hard on the opening windward leg, accurately predicting the shifting wind to round the first mark with a 15-second lead. In the light northerly breeze that rarely got above 10 knots, ORACLE BMW Racing used its downwind speed to extend into a 24-second lead by mark 2 but still with the penalty outstanding. Needing to get out to around a 40-second delta, USA-76 split tacks from Alinghi on the second windward leg and opted to go to the left side of the course. The Swiss team held out to the right side and picked up a favourable shift and some added pressure and by the third mark had seized the lead. ORACLE BMW Racing rounded 10 seconds astern.

Despite putting the pressure on with a series of gybes, USA 76 was unable to close down the distance. By mark 4 Alinghi had stretched their lead to 24 seconds, and with just two legs left to complete, that was a telling distance. USA-76 initiated a tacking duel up the last windward leg that Alinghi covered tenaciously. The delta stayed at the final mark was the same with the Swiss rounding ahead by 24 seconds. With just the downwind leg to the finish left to go ORACLE BMW Racing attacked hard, again showing good speed, and in the final third of the leg sailed over SUI-64 to windward. However the Swiss team gybed away for the line to regain the lead and with ORACLE BMW Racing still having to complete its 360-degree turn, SUI-64 crossed to win the series and the Louis Vuitton Cup.

For the challenge from the Golden Gate Yacht Club, headed by CEO Larry Ellison, it’s the end of the 2003 campaign. Having started in August 2000 the team assembled one of the most technically advanced boats in the world whilst the sailing team aboard ORACLE BMW Racing performed outstandingly well to get through to this final stage of the tournament. Alinghi will now face Team New Zealand in a best of nine race series for the America’s Cup staring on 15th February 2003.

Quotes from the boat :

 Larry Ellison, CEO : "The Oracle BMW racing guys sailed well - it’s just that Alinghi sailed better. That is the best sailing I’ve seen in my life, you normally don’t see this much passing with these big boats - normally whoever is ahead at the weather mark stays ahead.

It’s been an honour to sail against a team like this, and a joy to watch. It’s no fun coming second but the best team won out there. Congratulations to Ernesto and the Alinghi team.

Absolutely I’ll be back."

 Chris Dickson, skipper : "It’s no fun coming second in a match race. It’s Alinghi’s day, congratulations to the Alinghi team. They sailed very well and did a fantastic job.

We’ve got a great team and a great boat and we sailed it as well as we could. But the scoreline reflects how good Alinghi is - well done".