RIO100 sets passage record
Southern Spars to build ETNZ boat
Southern Spars has been appointed to build Emirates Team New Zealand’s (ETNZ) boat for the 35th America’s Cup. The company has provided masts for various teams in every America’s Cup for the past 25 years, including the victorious Black Magic campaign in 1995.
The new boat, a 50ft foiling catamaran, will be launched early next year ahead of the Louis Vuitton Challenger Series and America’s Cup to be held in Bermuda from the beginning of May 2017.
ETNZ says it will be its most technically-advanced yacht ever. Last month, the team launched its first custom-designed development boat, for which Southern Spars is producing the wing-sails.
Says ETNZ chief executive, Grant Dalton: “Our relationship with Southern Spars goes back a long way and this will be our sixth campaign together. We are delighted Southern Spars will be drawing on its broad and deep international experience to build the entire boat, with the exception of the beams.”
Southern Spars director, Mark Hauser, said the boat will take at least 13,000 hours to build, and while the company is delighted, there is little time to celebrate.
Lloyd Thornburg’s MOD70 trimaran Phaedo 3 has set a new record for the fastest circumnavigation of Ireland.
She crossed the finish line at Kish Lighthouse, Dún Laoghaire 36 hours and 52 minutes after starting, beating the previous world record by one hour and 45 minutes.
The previous world record of 38 hours, 37 minutes and seven seconds was set by Musandam Oman-sail in last June’s Volvo Round Ireland Yacht Race.
The latest record comes just weeks after Lloyd and his Phaedo 3 crew won the round the Isle of Wight Island race, smashing Sir Ben Ainslie’s record and setting a new record of two hours 23 minutes and 23 seconds.
Carlo Croce, who is standing for a second and final term as President of World Sailing ( WS), has unveiled his election manifesto – A New Era for World Sailing.
It builds on what has already been achieved in his first term as president and includes six themes which would underpin and guide his final presidential term. They are: • Ensure World Sailing is a global leader in sporting governance • Become a world leader in ocean sustainability • Embrace innovation to drive the global growth of sailing • Establish one-design standards to ensure athletes are competing fairly • Consolidate sailing’s place in the Olympic Games • Ensure the return of para sailing to the Paralympic Games
“My manifesto,” says Croce, “builds on what has already been achieved in my first term as World Sailing President, and I am confident that the ideas I have outlined are not only deliverable, they would also herald an exciting new era of growth for our organisation and for the sport of sailing. It is this approach that would underpin my second and final term as World Sailing President if I have the honour of being re-elected.”
The election the next WS President will be made at its annual conference in Barcelona in November.