Malmö-Skåne Louis Vuitton Acts - Day 1
by 32nd America’s Cup Press Office 25 Aug 2005 18:31 BST
Luna Rossa Challenge vs Mascalzone Latino Capitalia Team on day one of the Malmö-Skåne Louis Vuitton Acts © ACM 2005 / Carlo Borlenghi
A wet start, but plenty of action at the Malmö-Skåne Louis Vuitton Acts
It was a good opening day of racing at the Malmö-Skåne Louis Vuitton Acts, with moderate Southerly breezes and flat water providing an ideal playground for the 12 teams of the 32nd America's Cup.
The weather wasn't perfect; the cool breeze with overcast skies and rain showers were a clear indication that the America's Cup was a long way from its host city of Valencia, Spain. But the weather didn't dampen the competition and two full flights of races were completed. The action was fast and furious all day, with the second Flight of racing full of thrills and spills.
Flight One
In the opening matches of Flight One, the Defender of the America's Cup, Alinghi faced the local favourites, in Sweden's Victory Challenge. The Swiss team had Jochen Schuemann on the helm for the first time in competition, as the Defender looks to build two strong racing teams. Schuemann didn't look out of place at all, starting well against Sweden's Magnus Holmberg, and building a good lead on the first leg. The Swiss demonstrated good speed and boat handling in racing away to the win.
In other matches in the opening flight, helmsman Thierry Peponnet on K-Challenge executed an aggressive pre-start, pushing +39 over the starting line early. That advantage at the start was converted into a race win by a French team who sailed a slick race.
New helmsman Chris Law on Shosholoza was very comfortable on the pre-start, the South African team looking much stronger than in Valencia. Although the South Africans lost to BMW ORACLE Racing, it was a much better effort from Shosholoza, who held an advantage on the early part of the leg.
Emirates Team New Zealand dispatched United Internet Team Germany, while Luna Rossa dispatched China Team. The Desafío Español squad won its race when Mascalzone Latino-Capitalia Team was forced to retire with equipment problems.
Flight Two
Despite a schedule that offered what appeared to be straight-forward matches, there was plenty of action in the afternoon matches, with people falling overboard, blown sails, and dramatic start line manoeuvres. The incidents were precipitated perhaps by an increase in wind strength with gusts approaching 20 knots.
The most important incident concerned the +39 Challenge when two crew members, Giuseppe Leonardi and Anthony Nossiter were swept into the water as they tried to hold a spinnaker down on the deck when the wind began to blow it out of the sail bag.
The sailors were plucked out of the water by the nearest Umpire boat, transferred to a support boat, and then back aboard the race boat. +39 was penalised for the incident as the Rules dictate it should be, and completed a 270-degree penalty turn before finishing.
Victory Challenge posted its first point of the series with a win over K-Challenge, earning the victory in the pre-start. Skipper Magnus Holmberg timed his sprint to the line perfectly, leaving K-Challenge behind and to leeward as the start gun fired. French skipper Thierry Peponnet couldn't recover from the poor start and the home team sailed safely to its first win.
Emirates Team New Zealand had a fright rounding the leeward gate in its match against China Team. A broken spinnaker pole led to the sail falling into the water and the boat nearly stopping. China Team threatened to overtake the Kiwis but the Emirates squad recovered just in time.
The Spanish team had a similar scare when its jib came down on the second upwind leg against United Internet Team Germany. A quick recovery by Spaniards meant the Germans couldn't overtake, but it certainly closed up the gap.
Like the Kiwis, BMW ORACLE Racing also broke a pole setting up for the final run, but had a secure enough lead over +39 to win the race easily. Finally, the Mascalzone Latino-Capitalia Team was unable to complete the second flight either, continuing to suffer from problems with its mainsail.
Racing continues on Friday with similar conditions forecast and two more full flights scheduled.
Day 1 Results:
Flight One
Alinghi (SUI 75) beat Victory Challenge (SWE 73), delta - 0:54
BMW ORACLE Racing (USA 76) beat Team Shosholoza (RSA 83), delta - 1:33
K-Challenge (FRA 60) beat +39 Challenge (ITA 59), delta - 0:38
Emirates Team New Zealand (NZL 82) beat United Internet Team Germany (GER 72), delta 1:39
Desafío Español 2007 (ESP 67) won, Mascalzone Latino-Capitalia Team (ITA 77) retired
Luna Rossa Challenge (ITA 74) beat China Team (CHN 69), delta - 1:38
Flight Two
Alinghi (SUI 75) beat Team Shosholoza (RSA 83), delta - 3:07
Victory Challenge (SWE 73) beat K-Challenge (FRA 60), delta 0:24
BMW ORACLE Racing (USA 76) beat +39 Challenge (ITA 59), delta 1:48
Desafío Español 2007 (ESP 67) beat United Internet Team Germany (GER 72), delta - 1:14
Luna Rossa Challenge (ITA 74) won, Mascalzone Latino-Capitalia Team (ITA 77) retired
Emirates Team New Zealand (NZL 82) beat China Team (CHN 69), delta 0:32
Malmö-Skåne Louis Vuitton Act 6 Points Leaderboard:
Alinghi 2pts
Emirates Team New Zealand 2pts
Luna Rossa 2pts
BMW ORACLE Racing 2pts
Desafío Español 2007 2pts
Victory Challenge 1pts
K-Challenge 1pts
Mascalzone Latino-Capitalia Team 0pts
+39 Challenge 0pts
United Internet Team Germany 0pts
China Team 0pts
Team Shosholoza 0pts
Update from Alinghi:
Victory over Victory for Alinghi
Jochen Schuemann, helmsman and Sports Director for Alinghi, at the helm for an America’s Cup regatta for the first time this year had a great first day in Malmö with two wins.
The first was over home team Victory Challenge in the first match of the first flight. After an even start, Alinghi held the lead consistently building it from 37 seconds at the weather mark to 44 at the 2nd and on up to a 54 second lead over the finish line. The second win was over Team Shosholoza, whom he beat by 3 minutes at the finish.
Jochen Schuemann, helmsman and Alinghi Sports Director comments on a very good first day: “We hoped for a good start, it’s important for the sailors and for the racing and hopefully winning – I think we had a strong team to beat in the local team and it was close at the start but then we slowly got surely in front and had a good beat. Against the South Africans it was a ‘must-win’ race and we won it”
“Fantastic weather – it was wet and cold – a very nice day”
“I think the opening race is always a little bit nerve-wracking but that is part of racing and competition – I think tomorrow will also have it, but it’s not for sure, we don’t know how it will come out – everyone is delighted of course but we have to do a very good job again with the boat and then we have a good chance to win”.
WORD FROM THE WEATHERMAN, JON BILGER
From a weather point of view, what’s the big challenge coming from Valencia to here? “In Valencia, typically in the summer you get sea breezes, which are quite steady, but here you don’t get that so much and the breeze can change quite rapidly. It’s quite a different scenario,” Jon Bilger, Alinghi weather team.
There’s a lot more breeze up here. Is the boat up to it? “We haven’t actually sailed in much wind for a long time so you get worried about breakages and things like that, sailing in this kind of breeze is testing and when you get gusts over 30 knots, that’s when you start to break boats,” Jon Bilger, Alinghi weather team.
How long have you been up here watching the conditions? “It’s good to get into the racing, we’ve been here for a week and a half now looking at the conditions so it’ll be good to do some racing,” Jon Bilger, Alinghi weather team.
SWEDISH STORY
Louise McCarthy, married to Grinder Will McCarthy (AUS) put us straight on where her loyalties lie: “I’m supporting my boys in Alinghi, of course! I think it’s great that Victory are in this regatta as well. They did very well in Valencia, and of course I am behind them as well, but I’ll put all my energy into cheering Alinghi”.
Sofia Ardern, married to Runner / Grinder Rodney Ardern (NZ) looked to the future: “If Alinghi wins and brings the Cup to Sweden, then I’ll be 100 percent behind Alinghi. Today, of course, I wanted Alinghi to win!”
Update from BMW Oracle Racing:
Five teams share top of the leader board
Malmö, Sweden. BMW ORACLE Racing shares the top of the leader board after
the first day of racing in the Louis Vuitton Act 6 regatta in Malmö today.
With two wins from two starts, USA-76 is one of five teams at the top of the
board.
In both matches, the team had the satisfaction of making significant gains
all the way round the track. With the wind building to over 20 knots towards
the end of the afternoon, all the teams were tested by the conditions with
several suffering considerable damage.
Drama struck BMW ORACLE Racing's opponents in the second match of the day,
when two of the crew in the Italian +39 team were swept overboard after
their spinnaker went out of control during the hoist. The men were not
injured and were recovered by the umpire boat. USA-76 did not escape
unscathed. On the final mark rounding, their carbon-fibre spinnaker pole
shattered during the hoist, forcing the team to complete the last downwind
leg controlling the spinnaker without a pole.
MATCH ONE SUMMARY - USA-76 vs RSA-83
Racing in a breeze of 15-18 knots, the two yachts left the start line on
starboard tack, with USA-76 to windward. Skipper Chris Dickson herded the
South Africans out beyond the port-hand lay line, and then led into the
first windward mark, rounding 33 seconds in front. From there, the BMW
ORACLE Racing team made gains on every leg, rounding the leeward mark with a
46-second lead, the second windward mark 57 seconds in front and, after a
storming final downwind leg, took the winner's gun with a commanding 1
minute 33 second lead.
MATCH TWO SUMMARY - USA-76 vs ITA-59
Sailing in an 18-22 knot breeze, skipper Chris Dickson worked hard in the
pre-start to take control of the starboard side and hit the line at full
speed to catapult into an early lead. Drama struck the Italian team as two
of their crew were swept off the bow and into the water when their spinnaker
went out of control in the first mark rounding. The crewmen were plucked out
of the water by the umpire boat and later transferred to the team chase
boat, which delivered them back on board. This incurred a mandatory penalty
against the Italian team.
With USA-76, however, it was not all plain sailing to the finish. Rounding
the final mark, the spinnaker pole on BMW ORACLE Racing's yacht shattered.
The team sailed the final leg controlling the spinnaker without the help of
a pole. But, they maintained their commanding lead and by the time the
Italians completed their penalty turn at the finish line, the final delta
was close to two minutes.
QUOTES
Ian Burns, Navigator, on the first race against the South African team: "We
managed to shepherd them all the way across the port-hand lay line and it
was pretty much a done deal after that. It is always nice to win a race with
gains on every leg."
On the second race: "There was plenty of breeze. It was up around 19 knots
for much of the race and about 23-24 knots at the end. Sailing in flat water
helped, but it was definitely on the windy side of life. We came off the
start line with a handy advantage, but the Italian team put up a good fight.
When their men-overboard drama happened, we could see it all. In fact we
suggested that our on-board cameraman pay attention to them, because there
was much more going on behind. The umpire boats are often following close
behind and the biggest danger in these situations is getting run over by the
umpires."
On the broken spinnaker pole: "We will have to study the video to figure out
exactly what happened. In that amount of breeze there is plenty of load on
and the pole was relatively light. Our biggest concern was to avoid wrapping
the spinnaker around the forestay. That nearly happened, but we managed to
get it to fill again and then we carried it down the final leg without
further drama."
Update from Emirates Team New Zealand:
Two wins open Malmo regatta for Emirates Team New Zealand
Two races today for Emirates Team New Zealand on the first day of Louis Vuitton Act 6 and two good wins.
But it was not all plain sailing. A problem with a spinnaker pole in the second race turned what was a procession as NZL 82 opened up a considerable lead on the less-fancied China Team into a much closer race.
A fitting on the topping lift failed just as the spinnaker was being lowered at the end of the first run and both pole and sail went into the water. The pole broke in two.
The crew, with one eye on the fast-approaching China Team, worked quickly to get NZL 82 moving again. CHN 69 got close, but NZL 82 was not seriously threatened and at the finish was a comfortable 32 seconds ahead.
Grant Dalton said after the race that great crew work saved what could have been a race-losing situation. “They just got on with the job… coolly and calmly. They knew what had to be done and they did it. It was good to be part of it.”
NZL 82 led CHN 69 around the first mark by 1min and was 59 sec at the second mark after the first downwind leg. At the third mark the lead was trimmed by 23 sec to 36sec.
First up NZL 82 beat United Internet Team Germany (GER 72) by 1 min 39 sec. The race started well with Dean Barker claiming the right of the course as planned. The wind shifted further left than anticipated giving GERR 72 an advantage but NZL 82 was still ahead by 33 seconds at the top mark.
NZL 82 extended to 1min 3sec on the run and from there it was a procession to the finish.
The lesson from the day’s racing was that the top four teams in Valencia are still the teams to be reckoned with. Alinghi had two wins, as did BMWOracle and Luna Rossa.
The weather off Malmo today, in sharp contrast to the previous week, was wet and gloomy with a breeze from the south and south-east between 14 and 16 knots, climbing to 18+ knots towards the end of the second race.
NZL 82 was not alone in drama. Several boats had gear failures and +39 lost two men overboard. They were recovered unharmed.
Update from K-Challenge:
First point on the scoreboard for K-Challenge in Malmo
It was a positive beginning for K-Challenge on this first day of match racing of the Louis Vuitton Act 6 in Malmö. Indeed, the team started by meeting two close adversaries: the Italians of +39 Challenge and the Swedes of Victory Challenge. K-Challenge had a victory and a defeat.
Thierry Peponnet, Skipper and Helmsman, explains: “we won against a team to which we lost during Act 4 in Valencia (+39 Challenge), then we lost against a team that we had overcome in Valencia (Victory Challenge). We’ve really improved our on-board coordination since the last Acts, especially in winds up to 18 knots. We must really continue to work on our coordination in the stronger breeze, since we have had very little chance to train in those conditions.”
The second race against the Swedes was in wind from 20 to 24 knots, whereas the first race against +39 Challenge, was in 15 to 16 knots.
He continues: “The speed of our boat is good and close to that of that of the Swedes. It is encouraging because we are sailing under our spinnaker better than we were in Valencia. Our second start against the Swedes was not as strong as the first race because we made a second tack which led us too late to the line. The first start was definitely better, since we really dominated +39 Challenge”.
The starts are crucial, especially for teams of a very close level. Stephan Kandler, chairman of K-Challenge comments: “we have the proof that we are ready, and it is necessary to continue our efforts. We are also calmer in making our tactical choices, which is a very good thing. But when one knows the importance of the starts in these races, it often comes down to the skill of match racing”.
Marc Bouët, coach of the team, who followed racing on the water, adds: “we managed the race against +39 Challenge very well in the breeze, after a super start. But in the second race, there was too much distance at the beginning to make gains, even if we had a good comeback on the last downwind leg against the Swedes. The differences are done on small errors which are not easily forgiven in match racing. But the important thing to note is that K-Challenge can play with their competition. “
Tomorrow, K-Challenge will meet Alinghi and BMW Oracle Racing. Thierry Peponnet explains that the objective will be to endeavour to have an equal start, to sail well, and to have good boathandling. The goal is above all to continue progress, along the lines of what was initiated after the assessment of the Valencia Acts.