Too steep a hill to climb for Swiss

The Swiss team, merging the two-time America’s Cup winning Alinghi DNA with the Formula One design brain trust of Red Bull, exits at the semi-final stage of the Louis Vuitton Cup with lessons learned for pursuing the modern America’s Cup.

From the very start, this challenge for the oldest trophy in international sport was determined to do things their way and with fun all along the way. Launching the challenge on behalf of the Société Nautique de Genève, the club that held the America’s Cup trophy from 2003 to 2010, a Team Principle and Founder Ernesto Bertarelli set out a clear vision.

“While keeping the winning spirit that has always animated Alinghi, we want for this challenge to do something totally different, totally new, totally fresh. When we imagined with (the late) Dietrich Mateschitz the involvement of Red Bull in the America’s Cup, he said ‘Our way is not to get into the sport as sponsors, but to blend into the team, to form a true partnership, to nurture young athletes and turn them into the best in their field.’

The team purchased the very first-generation Emirates Team New Zealand AC75 ‘Te Aihe’ and set-up a temporary base at the mouth of the Port Vell in Barcelona – the first team to arrive in the host city. Their first sail in September 2022 began the education.

Sailing through that first winter, it was tough not just for the sailors but the shore team and technical teams too, with new processes and protocols to adapt to. But progress was rapid and the sailing team, a mix of young, talented Swiss sailors was fused with senior Cup-winning team members to strike a balance of youth and experience.

Arnaud Psarofaghis emerged as the figurehead for the project, almost from the start, whilst the likes of Maxime Bachelin, Bryan Mettraux, Nicolas Rolaz, Nico Charbonnier and Yves Detrey became his trusted sailing team and on-water sparring partners.

The arrival of the team’s first AC40 in January 2023 was a step-change in preparations and that first boat provided a further learning platform for the sailors. When the second AC40 arrived in May 2023, the opportunity to start foiling match-racing (with a huge focus on pre-starts) was realized.

The team zoned in on the upcoming Preliminary Regattas in Vilanova i La Geltrú, Spain and Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, and after months of training, Alinghi Red Bull Racing was always in the hunt for podium places and regularly front-running in the fleet races with excellent starts and good pace.

Final execution was something the team needed more time to work on, so after the second Preliminary Regatta in Jeddah, the team elected to maintain a winter training base in the Red Sea for their two AC40s and brought in the experience of Dean Barker and the competitive edge of Phil Robertson as coaches to help sharpen tactics.

Whilst the sailors prepared for action, back in Ecublens at the Decision SA build facility near Lausanne, the new Alinghi Red Bull Racing AC75 was coming together, and at the end of February 2024, the boat was loaded onto a truck for the road-delivery to Barcelona and the final fit-out, ahead of a truly stunning reveal at the beginning of April.

By mid-April, ‘BoatOne’ was sailing, showing impressive maneuverability as well as speed – both in a straight-line and at take-off – that had never been seen before in the AC75 class. The sailors pushed through the commissioning phase impressively and continued to work the boat up to race pace, even bringing in their AC40 with Barker and Robertson onboard for pre-start practice.

But a dismasting on June 13 2024, which was the first occurrence in the AC75 class, brought new questions on their preparation. While the exact cause remains unknown outside of the team, the Swiss team was back on the water four-days later, sailing and training again.

Fortune, though, was not in Alinghi Red Bull Racing’s favor, as just two days before the start of the Louis Vuitton Preliminary Regatta at the end of August 2024, a new mast that was literally hours into commissioning, came tumbling down. Once again, the shore team swung into action and got the boat ready for the regatta, but just one win from five races was not the result that the team had hoped for.

As the Louis Vuitton Cup began, the speed deficiency of Alinghi Red Bull Racing was exposed as all the Challenger teams had stepped forward in performance. It was immediately apparent, almost from the outset, that the Swiss were in a fight for survival to make it through to the semi-finals – narrowly beating out Orient Express Racing to advance.

However, an immediate string of four straight losses against the British, some by a distance, showed the level required as the competition progressed. A win from behind in race five, with ‘BoatOne’ skirting around a displacement Britannia that had fallen off the foils, but it was not to be as the Brits easily won the next race to complete the series 5-2.

“I’m immensely proud of this team and the partnership with Red Bull,” noted Bertarelli, Team Chairman. “We would have liked to go further in the competition, but that’s what sport is all about. Congratulations to Ineos Britannia for their performance. They’re quick and make few mistakes, and we wish them all the best for the rest of the competition.”

The Swiss indicated a desire to return for the 38th America’s Cup. “For sure, we want to make the next step,” said Psarofaghis. “The America’s Cup is different from anything else. You can win gold medals in all the classes, but it’s not the same.”

The Swiss earned the admiration of Race Director Iain Murray. “For the team to take the New Zealand first generation boat (Te Aihe), build a team, build a base, build everything and get to this level of performance is very impressive. I think they have laid a really good base and foundation for the future, and it will be great to see them come back bigger and stronger again.”

Viewing details – Race information – Results – Weather forecast

Following the publication of the AC37 Protocol and AC75 Class Rule on November 17, 2021, the AC75 Class Rule and AC Technical Regulations were finalized on March 17, 2022. The entry period was from December 1, 2021 until July 31, 2022, but late entries for the 37th America’s Cup could be accepted until May 31, 2023. The Defender was to announce the Match Venue on September 17, 2021 but postponed the reveal, finally confirming Barcelona on March 30, 2022. The 37th America’s Cup begins October 12, 2024.

Teams revealed to challenge defender Emirates Team New Zealand (NZL):
• INEOS Britannia (GBR)
• Alinghi Red Bull Racing (SUI)
• Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli Team (ITA)
• NYYC American Magic (USA)
• Orient Express Racing Team (FRA)

2023-24 Preliminary Regattas
September 14-17, 2023 (AC40): Vilanova i la Geltrú, Spain
November 30-December 2 (AC40): Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
August 22-25, 2024 (AC75): Barcelona, Spain

2024 Louis Vuitton Cup Challenger Selection Series*
August 29-September 9: Double Round Robin
September 14-19: Semi Finals (Best of 9)
September 26-October 7: Finals (Best of 13)

*Team New Zealand competes in the round robin stage only, but the results of their races were not included in the challenger leaderboard.

2024 America’s Cup
October 12-27: 37th Match (Best of 13)

For competition details, click here.

Additionally, 12 teams will compete in the Youth America’s Cup and Women’s America’s Cup.

Noticeboard: https://ac37noticeboard.acofficials.org/
Event details: www.americascup.com/en/home

Source: ACE