SWE 96 will be called Järv

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PRESS RELEASE

SWE 96 will be called Järv

(22 February 2007, Valencia) At the official SWE 96 party, Victory Challenge announced today the name of the new boat for the 32nd America’s Cup.
It will be called Järv. The järv, or wolverine in English, is one of the least known predators which is remarkably strong for its size and often described as cunning.

The wolverine is relatively light, weighing only about 10-30 kilos, and not longer than 70-110 centimetres. Despite its diminutive size, it can easily take out much bigger prey.

By naming SWE 96 Järv Victory Challenge continues its tradition of giving their America’s Cup boats names from nature. The two boats built in Auckland, SWE 63 and SWE 73 were called Örn, eagle, and Orm , snake.

Apart from the choice of names and that they all belong to the America’s Cup Class, there are no other similarities between the new boat and the original ones. (Even the class rules have changed since Auckland).

“The boat has advanced in every single detail, and nothing remains form the old boats,” said Mani Frers, who together with his father German Frers, led the design team.

The fact that Victory Challenge this time decided to build only one boat, and not two, has placed other requirements on the design team and the development programme. SWE 63 and SWE 73 have been used as part of this development, initially to adapt them to the new class rules, then later on – during the autumn of 2006 – to test new solutions for rigging, sail and deck layout.

“In this way we could, for the construction, focus on the hull. It has been designed for the conditions we expect in Valencia. We put the target high, wishing to create the perfect tool, and SWE 96 is a good tool for match racing. We have designed her to be easy to manoeuvre and quick to accelerate”, say Mani Frers.

It takes time, however, for the sailing team to get the maximum out of such an advanced construction as a new America’s Cup boat.

“What we have seen of the SWE 96 so far seems very promising. The boat is evolving by the day.”
Here are the most important facts about Järv (SWE 96):

Length: 24 metres
Width: 3.7 metres
Weight: 24 tonnes
Bulb & keel: 21 tonnes
Mast: 750 kilos
Hull: 2.250 kilos
Height of mast: 34 metres
Depth in water: 4.1 metres
Main sail: 210-215 sq. m.
Spinnaker: 500-530 sq. m.
Genoa: 130-140 sq. m.
Building material: carbon fibre composite
Design: German Frers Jr, German Frers Sr and their design team in Milano.
Boat building manager: Killian Bushe.
Boat yard: Victory Challenge’s yard in Lindholmen Science Park, Göteborg
Built: 2006
Crew: 17 persons

The construction of the boat started on 14th June 2006, after four months of planning and preparations. The design process started during 2005.

Construction is taking place in Victory Challenge’s boatbuilding yard at Lindholmen Science Park in Hisingen, Göteborg, in a cluster of high tech and development-intensive companies which have grown up in an area that was previously part of the city’s mighty shipbuilding industry.

There is really no shipbuilding activity remaining, instead there are companies like Volvo Cars, Volvo Technology, Ericsson, IBM, Semcon and WM-data Caran, as well as Göteborg University, Chalmers University of Technology and the joint IT University.

It is difficult to think of a more suitable place for the building of a boat for sailing’s Formula 1, in an area with its roots in the shipbuilding industry but which is today characterised by innovation and optimism.

At his disposal he had a newly-built 40 metre-long oven, which was an important part of building a carbon fibre composite boat. This was not the only new thing; the entire construction process has changed since Örn (SWE 63) and (SWE 73) Orm were created for the America’s Cup in Auckland, 2002-2003.
Last time, in the same boatyard, Victory Challenge used a male mould. Then the boat was built on a wooden plug, which was somewhat smaller than the actual boat to get the right size. It was quicker, but also required more finishing work with filler which, in turn, made the hull heavier.

This time a female mould was used. Therefore a wooden plug was built first, exactly according to Mani Frers’ drawing of the boat. A carbon fibre mould was laminated on to it, which was then hardened in the oven, just like when the actual boat was made.

The boat, with one layer of carbon fibre, one layer with a honeycomb of kevlar, and another layer of carbon fibre, was built inside the mould.

There are many advantages to this more time-consuming process of building an America’s Cup boat. One obvious one was to save weight. A lot less filler was needed – and simply that reduces the weight of the boat by more than 100 kilos.

Then remember that the hull of a 24-metre-long America’s Cup boat that is built on a male mould weighs about 800 kilos.

Using a female mould means that more than an additional 100 kilos can be moved down to the bulb, which increases the boat’s speed.

The total weight may still not exceed 24 tons.

Boatbuilding manager, Killian Bushe, was uncompromising in his effort to achieve the best possible result. He was also like this when he built the winning boat for ABN AMRO for the Volvo Ocean Race 2005-2006, and for Illbruck for the round the world sailing in 2001-2002.

For the construction he had 25 people on the boatbuilding team in Göteborg, with 14 different nationalities represented

On the 12th October 2006 they had progressed so far that Victory Challenge could be allocated sail number 96 for the new 32nd America’s Cup boat.

The announcement was made at a breakfast press conference with Magnus Holmberg, skipper and helmsman, as well as Mani Frers and Killian Bushe at the Nordic Sea Hotel in Stockholm.

SWE 96 was the 14th sail number to be allocated for in the 32nd America’s Cup. A sail number is only allocated once the construction of the hull has started.

SWE 96 was ready to leave the boatyard in Göteborg on the 8th January for transport by lorry to Valencia. Once arrived at Victory Challenge’s base in the host city of the 32nd America’s Cup, SWE 96 was equipped with winches, hydraulics and electronics. The hull decorated with Red Bull on the bow and the energy drink’s logotype on the sides, received a new look compared to SWE 63 and SWE 73. The keel and rigging were mounted.

On Friday 9th February, 2007 it was launched in a private ceremony in front of the Victory Challenge team.

Magnus Holmberg, skipper and helmsman, said: “It’s really a historic day for Victory Challenge. It’s great to be here. From the sailing team I really want to thank Mani Frers and the design team and Killian Bushe and the boat building team. It has not only been a huge number of man hours going in to the project, it has also been a lot of blood sweet and tears and I know all of you have been fighting hard to get this awesome piece of equipment together.”

“We from the sailing team have had some input into first stage, but now we have to step up and make sure that we get the maximum out of the boat and make it fast and take good care of it. We feel the responsibility to you both but we also very much look forward to it. And now Kristina Anker, a wife of our CEO Johan Stenman, will bless the boat before it goes into the water,” Magnus Holmberg finished, at which she was lifted to the bow where she smashed a bottle of Moët & Chandon. SWE 96 was then launched.

On the following day, the boat was taken for her maiden voyage.

After the first structure tests, two-boat sailing started with SWE 96 and SWE 73 on Monday the 19th of February.

Victory Challenge decided to wait with the boat party until the 22nd February.

The ACC class was used in the America´s Cup for the first time in 1992. Until the competition in Auckland 2002-2003, 82 sail numbers had been allocated.

A further 18 sail numbers have been allocated in the 32nd America’s Cup, and they are as follows:

SUI 100, Alinghi, Switzerland
ITA 99, Mascalzone Latino, Italy
USA 98, BMW Oracle Racing, USA
ESP 97, Desafío Español, Spain
SWE 96, Victory Challenge, Sweden
CHN 95, China Team
ITA 94, Luna Rossa Challenge, Italy
FRA 93, Areva Challenge, France
NZL 92, Emirates Team New Zealand
SUI 91, Alinghi, Switzerland
ITA 90, Mascalzone Latino, Italy
GER 89, United Internet Team, Germany
ESP 88, Desafío Español, Spain
USA 87, BMW Oracle Racing, USA
ITA 86, Luna Rossa Challenge, Italy
ITA 85, +39 Challenge, Italy
NZL 84, Emirates Team New Zealand, Nya Zeeland
RSA 83, Team Shosholoza, South Africa

In the compulsory pre-regattas during 2005 and 2006 the only condition was that the boats should fulfil the requirements in the new class rules, version 5.
For the challengers’ series, the Louis Vuitton Cup, and the America’s Cup Match, the original terms of the “Deed of Gift” apply, that the hull must be built in the country the challenger comes from. Therefore, new teams like China Team and United Internet Team, have been forced to build new boats. However, in order to be competitive all the teams have built at least one boat. Building two boats is permitted.

Victory Challenge’s main partners for the 32nd America’s Cup are Tele2, Red Bull and MTG. Metro and Viasat Broadcasting are media partners. Sail Racing, LIROS Yacht Ropes, Rutgerson Marin, Pergo and OM Pimespo Ibercarretillas are official suppliers. Team suppliers are Sebago, Oakley, Optimus, Fitness First in Valencia and Nordic Sea Hotel in Stockholm.

ENDS

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