TOP AMERICA'S CUP SKIPPERS - A PRESS CONFERENCE IN BERMUDA.

by John Roberson on 16 Oct 2000 HAMILTON, BERMUDA (October 16, 2000) - Skippers from most of the confirmed
teams for the next America's Cup, will attend a press conference in Bermuda
during the final event of this year's Swedish Match Grand Prix Sailing
Tour, the Colorcraft Gold Cup.

The press conference will take place at the Royal Bermuda Yacht Club on
Tuesday, October 24th at 4:00 p.m. EST, and will feature:-

Dennis Conner
Russell Coutts
Peter Gilmour
Chris Dickson
Dean Barker
Ed Baird
James Spithill
Andy Green
John Cutler

The "State of the America's Cup" press conference will be hosted by the
well known "voice of sailing" Peter Montgomery from New Zealand, and will
be a suitable curtain raiser to the Colorcraft Gold Cup, in which all these
skippers are participating.

Media can place questions prior to the press conference by visiting
www.swedishmatchgp.com, the official Web site of the Swedish Match Grand
Prix Sailing Tour.

Media unable to attend can also log on to the web site to view the event
live on-line.

For more information contact:

Shawn McBride at +1 203-352-6323 or shawn.mcbride@octagon.com.

Or log on to www.swedishmatchgp.com for the most recent news and
information on the Swedish Match Grand Prix Sailing Tour.


Details of participating skippers:-

Ed Baird - United States

Skipper of the New York Yacht Club's Young America in Auckland, 42-year-old
Baird is a Rolex Yachtsman of the Year. Baird was part of the winning Team
New Zealand for the 1995 America's Cup as sailing coach.

Dean Barker - New Zealand

Last winter 27-year-old Kiwi Dean Barker sprang to public prominence when
he became the youngest-ever skipper to take the helm of a boat in an
America's Cup race. With the departure of Team New Zealand leader Russell
Coutts for Switzerland, Aucklander Barker now heads the hometown sailing
team with the job of defending the Cup in 2003.

Dennis Conner - United States

He has won the America's Cup four times and lost it twice. Now, Conner,
from San Diego is heading the New York Yacht Club's 2003 challenge for the
America's Cup. That campaign will come 20 years after the fateful 1983 loss
of the Cup when Conner became known as the man who lost the Cup for the New
York YC.

Russell Coutts - New Zealand

Planning and executing a successful defense of the America's Cup for Team
New Zealand has kept Kiwi skipper Russell Coutts from the match racing
circuit and as a result his world ranking is a dismal 96th. The 38-year-old
Aucklander has now moved to Switzerland with his core match racing team
where he is skipper and executive director of Ernesto Bertarelli's new
Swiss challenge for the America's Cup from the Societe Nautique of Geneva.

John Cutler - New Zealand

He has a home on the north shore of Auckland in his native New Zealand, but
Cutler has spent much of the last decade racing under other flags in other
parts of the world. He was tactician for Japan's Nippon Challenge for the
America's Cup in San Diego in 1992 and 1995 and skippered Dawn Riley's
America True challenge in Auckland last winter. Now he will be based in San
Francisco for the next three years as Sailing Team Manager of Larry
Ellison's Oracle Racing Team challenge for the next America's Cup.

Chris Dickson - New Zealand

Aucklander Chris Dickson first came to international public attention in
1986-87, as New Zealand's feisty young skipper at the helm of the "Plastic
Fantastic" Kiwi 12-Metre, sparring against Dennis Conner for the right to
challenge Australia for the America's Cup. In America's Cup sailing he
skippered for Japan in 1992 and for his own Tag Heuer syndicate in 1995.
Now in San Francisco, California, Dickson is skipper of Oracle Racing Team
challenge for the America's Cup.

Peter Gilmour - Australia

Now preparing for his fifth America's Cup campaign, Australian Peter
Gilmour will lead the Seattle based OneWorld Challenge for the Cup in 2003.
"Gilly" made his debut as starting helmsman for the Australian defense in
1987 when the Cup was sailed off Fremantle, which is his home. He was most
recently the skipper of Japan's Nippon Challenge during the last Cup in
Auckland. He is ranked fifth in the world.

Andy Green - Britain

At the America's Cup in Auckland he was rules advisor to Hawaii's
Abracadabra challenge. Later, he organized the purchase of two
International America's Cup Class boats for British owners and is
instrumental in building interest in an UK challenge for the Cup.

James Spithill - Australia

In 2000 this young Aussie became the youngest competitor ever in the
America's Cup, when he secured funding for his Young Australia challenge.
It's a mark of this 21-year-old Sydney prodigy's prowess on the starting
line that American Paul Cayard fought to have him join Cayard's AmericaOne
challenge as a training partner for the America's Cup after Spithill's
Young Australia team was eliminated from Louis Vuitton Challenger
competition in Auckland. Cup rules prevented the move, but Cayard's bid
solidified Spithill's brief but growing reputation as a match race talent.