America’s Cup teeters with latest COVID-19 lockdown

Auckland, New Zealand (February 27, 2021) – Due to the latest COVID 19 level 3 lockdown announced this evening by the Government, which is in place for a minimum of seven days, America’s Cup organizers are now reviewing the situation to determine the impact for the start of the 36th Match on March 6.

New Zealand has a 4-level COVID-19 Alert System with each Alert Level defining what measures are taken. When the alert level shifted from 1 to 3 during the Prada Cup, it postponed racing until it shifted down to level 2.

The latest shift to level 3 requires people to stay home and closes libraries, museums, cinemas, food courts, gyms, pools, playgrounds, and markets. This decision was due to the discovery of a 21-year-old male who had visited multiple locations while infectious.

It is known if the America’s Cup racing can be held during level 3, though teams had previously been able to train at that level during the Prada Cup postponement. One notable consequence of racing during level 3 is that the America’s Cup Village would be closed to fans and the race course would likely be moved far offshore to limit large spectator gatherings on land.

With the rest of New Zealand moving to alert level 2 for seven days, a border checkpoint is now established surrounding Auckland to contain any spread. There is currently no known current link from this latest case and the existing February cluster which impacted the Prada Cup.

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