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UNVEILING DAY AT PORT AMERICA'S CUP
Sunday was unveiling day at Port America's Cup, the morning when all 12 teams had to drop the protective skirts that had been guarding the underbodies of their race boats. A traditional Valencian 'mascleta' of fireworks opened the countdown to unveiling at 09:00. Within half an hour, all the team bases were open to media and other team members.

With 19 boats unveiling at once, and the updated Port America's Cup ready to welcome visitors, the day took on a tone of celebration as the public were invited to the team bases from 11:30, where sailors and designers from other teams could be seen taking the measure of the competition. By 16:00, over 40 000 people had passed through the doors of Port America's Cup.

Although there were no visible breakthrough design innovations on the scale of the winged keel that Australia II rode to victory in 1983, many observers were astonished by the range of solutions to the same basic design question posed by the America's Cup Class Rule.

"Walking around the place, I am surprised that there are so many configurations around the teams, basically because we thought we'd done a pretty good job with (closing up) the Rule," said Rolf Vrolijk, the lead designer of Alinghi. "We thought the boats would all be the same. But it's not like that and we see clearly that the different design groups and teams have opted for different directions, and I think that makes it a bit more interesting."

Among the more visually clear differences were those seen in the size, shape and configuration of the keel bulbs on different boats. Some teams, like Emirates Team New Zealand, sported a short, fat bulb on one boat, and a long, thin, 'cigar' style bulb on the other. Luna Rossa showed off a radical hull underbody on ITA 94, which was marked by hard angles, slab sides and a flat bottom.

The 'unveiling' theme also applied to Port America's Cup, where many of the new entertainment activities, restaurants, bars and cafes opened for the first time on Sunday. A large turnout of public came to enjoy the festivities ahead of racing in Valencia Louis Vuitton Act 13, which is scheduled to begin on Tuesday afternoon. A spectacular light show in Port America's Cup, produced by Endesa, is scheduled to conclude the festivities on the day at 21:15.

On Monday, the 12 skippers will attend a press conference to give their views on the upcoming decisive season of the 32nd America's Cup.

Links to photos:
www.cupinfo.com
www.sail-world.com
americascup.com/en/multimedia/pictures/index.php?idIndex=1833&idPage=1
valenciasailing.blogspot.com

19 ACC BOATS READY TO RACE
Regatta Director Dyer Jones released a list of boats the 12 teams have 'declared' as their eligible race boats for the 32nd America's Cup. 19 boats are ready to race when the battle commences on the waters off Valencia.

Each team is permitted to declare up to two boats. The main restriction on eligibility hinges on the country where the boat was built. To be eligible to race in the ultimate, decisive season of the 32nd America's Cup, the boats must be built in the country of the challenge.

Thus, Victory Challenge, whilst building just one new boat, has been able to declare both SWE 96 and SWE 73 (built and raced in the last America's Cup in Auckland). But China Team, having built CHN 95, is unable to declare either CHN 69 or CHN 79 as they were built in France for a French team in the last Cup.

Teams declaring two boats:

Alinghi - SUI 100, SUI 91
BMW ORACLE Racing - USA 98, USA 87
Luna Rossa Challenge - ITA 94, ITA 86
Emirates Team New Zealand - NZL 92, NZL 84
Desafio Espanol 2007 - ESP 97, ESP 88
Victory Challenge - SWE 96, SWE 73
Mascalzone Latino-Capitalia Team - ITA 99, ITA 90

Teams with one declared boat:

+39 Challenge - ITA 85
Team Shosholoza - RSA 83
Areva Challenge - FRA 93
United Internet Team Germany - GER 89
China Team - CHN 95

www.americascup.com

LIVING THE 32ND AMERICA'S CUP FROM THE INSIDE
Moor your boat in one of the exclusive marinas located just next to the race course and within the venue. Enjoy the show, see the ACC yachts passing through the canal, be part of this unique nautical event in Europe.

Apart from the regattas, the 32nd America's Cup will offer continuous activities, from gourmet restaurants, sight-seeing bars, parties, games, night-club and other sail related events.

You can see it with your own eyes. Will you miss it?

Port America's Cup Marina: in the heart of the passion.

Tariffs and booking are available on www.portamericascup.com

PUMA JOINS VOLVO OCEAN RACE
PUMA, the global sports lifestyle company, has become an exciting addition to the entry list for the 2008-09 event.

Known as the PUMA Racing Team, the syndicate will be headed by Ken Read, USA.

PUMA becomes the third confirmed entry. To date the others are from Ericsson Racing Team and the Mean Machine syndicate backed by Dutch businesman Peter de Ridder. More announcements will follow in the next few months.

PUMA will also be the official supplier and official licensee of replica merchandise for the race which starts in Alicante in October 2008.

Read, considered one of the world's most accomplished sailors, has twice been involved in America's Cup campaigns in 2000 and 2003. He was named United States Rolex Yachtsman of the Year twice and has over 40 world, North American and National Championships to his credit. Read joined Ericsson Racing Team for the last four legs of the 2005-06 race.

On PUMA's decision to enlist the services of Read, VOR CEO Glenn Bourke: "PUMA has chosen wisely in asking Ken Read to head up the campaign. He is one of the finest sailors in the world. He has won multiple one-design sailing events - the toughest cauldron of all.

"He is an incredibly good spokesperson for the sport. He's a sensible guy, he's been involved in sailing for a long time, he's seen it from the grass-roots up and he is one of those special guys who can get the race out to a broader cross section of people and he also gets the big picture. He's very committed to the sports side, but not at the expense of the business side."

www.volvooceanrace.com

TEAM OMEGA RECEIVE THE H3000 TREATMENT
Team Omega, skippered by Russell Coutts, three times Americas Cup winner and co-designer of the RC44, is currently putting the new B&G H3000 system through its paces in the Portoroz Cup in Slovenia. As official supplier to the RC44 fleet, B&G were on hand at the event as part of their worldwide support programme.

The bespoke nature of the H3000 system offers multiple performance levels through easy upgrades to the central processor. Besides the RC44 the wide range of other yachts fitting H3000 this month is testament to this - Swan 42, X41, Grand Soleil 40, J109, Rogers 46.

www.bandg.com

SIXTH OFFICIAL ENTRY FOR BARCELONA WORLD RACE
The new double-handed Barcelona World Race that starts on 11th November 2007 today announced the sixth team to officially enter the race. The latest entry will be skippered by Spanish sailor Guillermo Altadill who will race alongside British sailor Brian Thompson, their combined talent and experience will make them a formidable duo out on the 25,000 mile race course. They will be racing the new Farr Design IMOCA Open 60 currently under construction in Cowes, Isle of Wight, UK under the expert guidance of Neil Graham, Technical Director of the Offshore Challenges Sailing Team. The boat is due to be completed by the end of May and will be followed by an official launch and the announcement of the confirmed title sponsor shortly after.

Altadill and Thompson bring a wealth of experience to this campaign including racing together on the Maxi catamaran 'Cheyenne' when they claimed the crewed round the world record in 2004 of 58 days, 9 hours 36 minutes and 40 seconds. Between them they have an incredible eight circumnavigations (Altadill 6 and Thompson 2) and a range of solo, crewed, inshore, offshore, Olympic, multihull and monohul experience.

Altadill, born in Barcelona and aged 44, is one of Spain's most respected sailors and who has competed in two Volvo Ocean Races (2005/06 onboard Team Ericsson and 2001/02 onboard Assa Abloy), two Whitbread Round the World Races and The Race onboard 'Club Med'.

Thompson, aged 45 who is based in Cowes, Isle of Wight, is a vastly experienced offshore sailor with over 12 years as watch captain or skipper and has held an incredible 25 world records to date. He has strong IMOCA Open 60 experience having raced onboard Kingfisher, Ecover, Skandia and was previously the skipper of Artemis.

Entries so far:
Jean-Pierre Dick (FRA) & Damian Foxall (IRE) / Paprec Virbac
Vincent Riou (FRA) & Sebastien Josse (FRA) / PRB
Dominique Wavre (SUI) & Michele Paret (FRA) / Temenos
Alex Thomson (GBR) & Andrew Cape (AUS) / Hugo Boss
Jeremie Beyou (FRA) & Sidney Gavingnet (FRA) / Delta Dore
Guillermo Altadill (ESP) & Brian Thompson (GBR) / TBC

www.barcelonaworldrace.com

TORNADO EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIP / MATS NYBERG TROPHY
El Arenal, Spain: Day 1 at the 2007 Tornado European Championship / Mats Nyberg Trophy looked promising, as the breeze filled early under clear skies.

But it was not to last, as a layer of cloud cover moved over Mallorca, and the south westerly breeze became increasingly unstable as it decreased. After abandoning the first attempt at a race, the fleet has completed Race 1 and the Championship is underway.

Xavier Revil & Christophe Espagnon (FRA) took the win, followed by Leigh McMillan & Will Howden (GBR), and Andrey Kirilyuk & Valery Ushkov (RUS).

As this report is being written, the fleet has abandoned Race 2. Racing is finished for the day.

Race 1 - Top Ten Results

1. Revil / Espagnon, FRA
2. McMillan / Howden, GBR
3. Kirilyuk / Ushkov, RUS
4. Marcolini / Bianchi, ITA
5. Gaebler / Struckmann, GER
6. Hagara / Steinacher, AUT
7. Iordanis / Trigonis, GRE
8. Mittelmeier / Mittelmeier, GER
9. Kalynchev / Shafranyuk, UKR
10. Echavarri / Paz, ESP

www.tornado.org

NORTH EUROPEAN IMS RANKING SHAPING UP
After last years successful event at Bornholm the North European IMS Ranking 2007 is ready for another year with even more participants. All the big classics in the region are included.

Last year Ralf Aspholm (SWE) won the HSH Nordbank blue championship on Bornholm in September. He and his crew sailed Data Communication, a Sinergia 40, in too top scorings in all the races in the series.

Aspholm has set his mind on returning to defend his title in 2007.

Seven races counted in the ranking series in 2006. This year the committee behind the North European IMS ranking has broadened its horizon and included an additional three races.

YKP Commodore Cup, Gdynia, Poland, Latvian Championship, in Riga via Salasgriva up to Parnuu, and Watergate, Parnuu in Estland is the new regattas. Eva Holmsten, head of organization in North European IMS Ranking are hoping that this will draw even more sailors.

North Europe is on of the strongholds for IMS sailing and the rule is drawing more sailors to attractive concepts like North European Championship Ranking and the NORC (Norwegian Offshore Racing Club) ranking in Norway. The worlds in IMS will be sailed at Hankoe, Norway this year, and Holmsten sees a bright future for IMS in the north.

The IMS class is very active, and this year the new IMS 670 class will be sailed for the first time in Sweden with a European Championship together with the Swedish Championship in Sandhamn from July 23rd. Eurocard Gotland Runt will also have an IMS 670 class.

Ten Ranking Events
May 17 - 20, YKP Commodore Cup, Gdynia, POL
June 9 - 10, aerderseilasen, Oslo, NOR
June 9 - 10, Volvo Suursari Race, Espoo, FIN
June 17 - 19, Part of Kieler Woche, GER
July 1 - 4, Eurocard Gotland Runt, SWE
July 7t - 11, Open Latvian Championship, LAT, Riga via Salasgriva up to Parnuu
July 7 - 11, German IMS Championship, Warnemunde, GER
July 11 - 14, Watergate, Parnuu, EST
July 23 - 28, Swedish Championship and IMS 670 Euro, Sandhamn, SWE
August 11 - 18, IMS Worlds, Hanko, NOR
Finals at Bornholm, DEN, September 20th to 23rd 2007

www.championofthebaltic.org

YACHTING MONTHLY SEARCH FOR PRODUCTION EDITOR
Want to work for the UKs leading cruising magazine? Yachting Monthly are on the hunt for a new Production Editor. An ability to work in InDesign, edit copy and proof read to a high standard is essential. The job involves writing headlines and seeing stories from raw copy to finished pages in PDF format. We need an experienced journalist who can cope with subbing around 90 editorial pages each month, with some freelance assistance. The successful candidate will liaise with the Editor, Art Editor, freelancers and our repro house.

Production experience is necessary and knowledge of PhotoShop and an ability to lay out pages is desirable. Some knowledge of sailing is an advantage, but most of all we want a sub-editor who is reliable and accurate.

Send your CV and a covering letter, stating current salary, to Paul Gelder, Editor, Yachting Monthly, Room 2215, King's Reach Tower, Stamford Street, London SE1 9LS.email: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it Phone 0207 261 6040

THE PORTOROZ CUP ENDS UP IN STYLE
Portoroz, Slovenia: Team Aqua, from Dubai, concluded the Portoroz Cup with a victory in the last fleet race, confirming - if necessary - its domination over the seven strong RC 44 fleet. Both Cro-A-Sail and Team Omega sailed consistently too, finishing respectively second and third in both the fleet and the match race events.

The weather was similar to the previous days, with a light sea breeze and a flat sea. Four regattas were at the program today, bringing the total number of races competed to seven fleet races and two complete round robins and making the Portoroz Cup a total success.

As the teams headed to the race course this morning, four of them were still in contention for the overall win in the fleet race. Two hours and three races later, there were only four points between Team Aqua, Cro-A-sail and Team Omega.

Team Aqua's helmsman, Scott Kennedy, showed strong nerves despite his young age by taking an excellent start and controlling the fleet from the beginning to the end. His team won the last regatta ahead of Beecom and Team Omega. Only 21 years old, Kennedy comes from New Zealand. He was previously well known in the 29er and 49er circuits (three times top 6 at the worlds), and ambitions to become a professional sailor. He proved to be a huge talent, winning two races and finishing twice fourth today.

Overall final results

Team - Match Racing - Fleet Racing - Overall points
1. Team Aqua - 1 - 1 - 2
2. Cro-A-Sail - 2 - 2 - 4
3. Team Omega- 3 - 3 - 6
4. Beecom - 5 - 4 - 9
5. Magia Alike - 4 - 6 - 10
6. Ekipa 44 - 6 - 5 - 11
7. Mascalzone Latino - 7 - 7 - 14

www.rc44.com

ARRIVEDERCI PAOLO
It seems impossible to say it, but the family of the America's Cup have waved good-bye to Paolo Venanzangeli for the last time. Paolone, as all his close friends used to call him, apart from being a very passionate sailing journalist and photographer, was a real fan of the America's Cup.

He personally covered all editions of the Cup from 1983, the year of the first Italian challenge in the history of this event (Azzurra). He was also in San Diego in 1995, when there was no Italian syndicate sailing.

Paolo was a full time writer for the Italian monthly sailing magazine Nautica and the sailing editor of the national daily newspaper Il Corriere dello Sport. He was also a contributor for the TV channels TMC and RAI, during the America's Cup sailed in San Diego in 1992 and the two editions sailed in Auckland in 2000 and 2003.

Paolo was one of the first Italian media to instill a passion in Italy for the Cup; a passion that is manifested with the presence of no fewer than three Italian challengers in Valencia and was also visible during the Trapani Louis Vuitton Acts 8 & 9 in October 2005 when more than 600,000 spectators came to cheer on the sailors.

Paolone was also a sailor and a boat owner (Seminole, a 1978 One Tonner). He sailed in many offshore regattas, like IOR winter series, Giraglia Race, Middle Sea Race and the Discovery Race. He was proud to be a RORC member, and proud of his four Atlantic crossings. In 1994 he created the 525-mile Roma per Due/Roma per Tutti offshore race for full and two-handed crews. -- Andrea Falcon

www.americascup.com

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR - This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
Letters are limited to 350 words. No personal attacks are permitted. We do require your name but your email address will not be published without your permission.

* From Willii Gohl: Great Idea that RORC will move to Islay.
I ask RORC for a job until april, 1st in 2099. As I own for my lifetime a squarefoot of this isle, which I rented to Laphroaig-Destillery for a drum of whisky once a year, I will offer this now to the racing manager of RORC, Janet Grosvenor, together with my wellingtons and a helmet against low flying geese, so that she can put her computer there for world wide communications.

* From a source that wishes to remain anonymous: Papal Nuncio Avrilios Primero, using special powers awarded to him in the 4th month of 1240 (or 20:1 as it was better known) suspended indefinitely the "commercial use of waters" law with the penalty for lawbreakers to be forced afloat on (or in) narrow boxes with no windows and filled with exercise machinery they had to operate at full speed non-stop...

THE LAST WORD
There are in fact two things, science and opinion; the former begets knowledge, the latter ignorance. -- Hippocrates

OC Events, www.ocevents.org , organisers of two major IMOCA 60 oceanic events, the new double-handed Barcelona World Race 2007, and the original solo transocean race, The Transat 2008 (ex-OSTAR) plus the Extreme 40 Sailing Series for The iShares Cup.

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