SailJuice Blog

Photo © Paul Todd/outsideimages.co.nz/Louis Vuitton

A terrible accident for Aleph at the Louis Vuitton Trophy today. Some are wondering if the French team will be told to pack their bags and go home having caused major damage to the borrowed BMW Oracle boat they were sailing. If there was willful intent in what they did, then maybe that would be appropriate. But this wasn't that. It was a misjudgement, a bad call, pure and simple.

It would be a travesty to throw Aleph out of the competition and let's hope it doesn't come to that.

Here's what Francesco Bruni, skipper of the other boat, Azzurra, said to me earlier today:

It felt like the biggest collision I ever had in my life. It was pretty big because Aleph tried to swing

After claiming a Finn bronze medal in Atlanta in 1996, Roy Heiner (NED) had turned to match racing, Soling and Ocean racing. A recent and successful comeback to the Finn scene during the Dutch Open championship last September has motivated Heiner for more! He will participate in this year Delta Lloyd regatta in the Finns, fourteen years after his medal and retirement from the Finn scene! Impressive stuff. Good luck to Roy.

In total, 30 Olympic medallists are ready for the Delta Lloyd Regatta 2010. This 5th event in the ISAF Sailing World Cup has attracted a very talented field with numerous World Champions. The 2010 edition has set record high pre-entries in all classes including the 2.4, with a total of 707 boats from 53 countries. As usual, the largest fleets are in the Laser, RS:X

A strange first day's racing at the Louis Vuitton Trophy in La Maddalena.

Unforced errors by Azzurra and Team Origin saw them lose matches in embarrassing circumstances.

• Too early into the start box for the Italians.
• Incorrectly rigged gennaker leading to a race-losing hour-glass for the Brits.

I've written a longer story here on the LV Trophy website:

http://www.louisvuittontrophy.com/news/features.php

and you can listen to the interview I got afterwards with Ben Ainslie here:

http://www.sailjuice.com/articles/ben-ainslie-unforced-error
 
Philosophical, Ben may be, but also quietly simmering at such a big cock-up today.

(photo: Paul Todd/ Louis Vuitton Trophy)

Posted via email from SailJuice News

Some of the skippers in the Louis Vuitton Trophy. (from left) Karol
Jablonski, Ben Ainslie, Dean Barker, Gavin Brady, James Spithill, Paul
Cayard

Posted via email from SailJuice News

Shades on for a sun-drenched opening ceremony at the Louis Vuitton
Trophy, La Maddalena

Some hot matches in prospect for start of racing tomorrow…

Posted via email from SailJuice News

Team Origin has announced that Mike Sanderson has left the team following a decision by Sir Keith Mills, Team Principal, to restructure the organisation. "This decision has been taken to ensure that the team functions as effectively and efficiently as possible, in order to improve the team’s performance and ultimately win the America’s Cup. Mike has been with the team since it was formed in 2007. He has made a huge contribution to establishing what has been a relatively new team and has worked hard to keep the team together over the last three years while the America’s Cup was in the courts. Sir Keith and the team wish Mike every success in the future."

Cor blimey! Where next for Mike? He'd be hot property for a Volvo Ocean Race campaign. And who will take his place

With two weeks to go until the start of the Extreme Sailing Series the Ecover Sailing Team have announced an all British line up for the season ahead.

British Olympic Tornado sailor Leigh McMillan is one of two new crew announcements, as he takes on the helm of the Ecover Extreme 40 in 2010. America’s Cup and TP52 sailor Jonathan Taylor also steps onboard in the role of bowman when they line up for the first event in Sète, France at the end of May. Skipper Mike Golding takes on the role of trimmer, with 2009 Ecover crew member Will Howden remaining in the joint role of mainsheet and tactician.

The new line up reunites McMillan and Howden, who competed together at World and Olympic level in the Tornado class from 2004 until to 2008. As one of