“A fantastic feeling”

PRESSINFORMATION

“A fantastic feeling”

(20 April 2007, Valencia) “It’s a fantastic feeling to start racing,” says Richard Mason, backstay grinder, about the fact that the challengers’ series, the Louis Vuitton Cup, has finally begun after four days of delayed races.

“It was a great day for us, winning our first race was important for our confidence.”

Victory Challenge beat Team Shosholoza by 46 seconds, but lost to Luna Rossa Challenge.

There was enough wind in Valencia today, even if it was light, to hold flights 1 & 2 of the Louis Vuitton Cup. Thus the final showdown in the 32nd America’s Cup has begun.

Victory Challenge raced the teams they should really have met on Monday, the South African Team Shosholoza and Italian Luna Rossa Challenge.

Järv (SWE 96) was the faster boat in the match against Team Shosholoza and led at each rounding and into the finish.

“But there were more puffs of wind that are normal for a sea breeze. On the second beat they closed in surprisingly quickly,” says Stefan Rahm, tactician.

The lead had shrunk to eleven seconds before the final run. However the last run was problem-free for Victory Challenge.

“The win was vital for the team’s confidence.”

In the match against Luna Rossa Challenge, Victory Challenge was a threat on the first beat.

“We had the same boat speed on the beat, but they had a slight advantage on the run,” says Stefan Rahm.

“But it’s always just as tough to lose against Luna Rossa Challenge.”

The day’s biggest surprise was in the first flight, when Italian Mascalzone Latino convincingly defeated the top team, Emirates Team New Zealand.

“I see it as an indication of how the Louis Vuitton Cup will be, with many unexpected victories and many unexpected losses,” says Richard Mason.

“There are great opportunities, also for us, for beating the big teams.”

After the cancelled sailing on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, due to too little wind, the race organisers, along with the Challenger Commision, have decided to adjust the race programme. The original idea was to let the planned race programme carry on and put in delayed matches afterwards in the reserve spaces, also in round robin two.

Now the decision has been taken to instead finish sailing round robin one first, in the right order.

This means that flights three and four will be sailed tomorrow, Saturday; Victory Challenge meets China Team and BMW Oracle Racing.

For the remaining parts of round robin one, which will now take some time, the race programme is as follows for Victory Challenge:

Sunday 22 April

Flights 5 & 6

Victory Challenge-United Internet Team

+39 Challenge-Victory Challenge

Monday 23 April

Flights 7 & 8

Bye: Victory Challenge

Victory Challenge – Areva Challenge

Tuesday 24 April

Flights 9 & 10

Desafío Español – Victory Challenge

Emirates Team New Zealand-Victory Challenge

Wednesday 25 April

Flight 11

Mascalzone Latino – Victory Challenge

If flights have to be delayed, then the entire programme will be moved.

The race organisers and the Challenger Commission continued their meeting this evening in order to determine the dates for round robin two.

Throughout round robin one and two, all the eleven challengers meet each other twice. The best four teams then go on to the semi-finals. Seven teams will be knocked out.

It is Victory Challenge’s battle for one of the semi-final places that makes the victory against Team Shosholoza of extra importance.

Bert Willborg

Communications Manager

Victory Challenge

Port America´s Cup (Base 4)

Ends

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