The 36th America's Cup will begin with the first two races next Wednesday, organisers confirmed on Friday, after the New Zealand government announced the strict coronavirus lockdown in host city Auckland would be eased on Sunday morning.
By Reuters Staff
2 Min Read
(Reuters) - Australian yachtsman Jimmy Spithill has hailed Team New Zealand skipper Peter Burling as “the best in the world” as the two prepare to face off in the opening America’s Cup races in Auckland on Wednesday.
Spithill, a two-time winner of the Auld Mug as skipper of Team Oracle, is co-helmsman for challengers Luna Rossa in the 36th edition of the America’s Cup, which had been due to start this weekend.
Coronavirus restrictions have delayed the start until next week, and Spithill was not underestimating the task that lies ahead of the Italian team.
By Reuters Staff
2 Min Read
(Reuters) - Luna Rossa are firm underdogs heading into next month’s America’s Cup match against holders Team New Zealand (TNZ) but it would be a mistake to write off the Italian team’s chances after their dominant display in the Challenger Series final, INEOS Team UK skipper Ben Ainslie has said.
Luna Rossa crushed Ainslie’s INEOS 7-1 in the best-of-13 series in Auckland and will have a second tilt at the world’s oldest sporting trophy when they take on TNZ from March 6.
The two teams previously went head to head in the 2000 America’s Cup match in Auckland and in the 2007 Challenger Series final in Valencia. TNZ swept both ties 5-0 but Ainslie expects a much tighter battle this time around.
4 Min Read
ATHENS (Reuters) - When Sofia Bekatorou, a Greek sailing gold medallist in the 2004 Olympics, opened up last month about being sexually assaulted by a sports official as a 21-year-old, it came as a breakthrough in a country where confronting such abuse has been rare.
FILE PHOTO: Olympic sailing champion Sofia Bekatorou leaves the prosecutor s office, following her statements on being sexually assaulted by a sports official in 1998, in Athens, Greece, January 20, 2021. REUTERS/Alkis Konstantinidis/
Her account - and the outpouring of support it provoked - prompted dozens of actors, singers, athletes and students to come forward in Greece’s delayed “#MeToo” moment, shaking the arts establishment and piling on pressure for change.
America's Cup organisers said on Thursday the Challenger Series final between Luna Rossa and INEOS Team UK will resume this weekend without spectators as Auckland remains under COVID-19 restrictions.