Team New Zealand retained the America’s Cup on Wednesday and chased away from its Italian challenger Luna Rossa to pick up the biggest prize in Auckland’s home waters.
The victory was the second in a row for a syndicate representing the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron, and the fourth victory in the final since 1995 for a team from New Zealand.
It was also the second consecutive victory for Team New Zealand’s 30-year-old helmsman Peter Burling, who added another title in a CV that already includes nine world championships and Olympic gold and silver medals.
“It means the world to us and the team,” he said. Burling after the race by Radio New Zealand, the national public broadcaster, said.
New Zealand’s victory in the race, two days after seizing the momentum in a tough competition, took advantage of its quick advantage to claim a rugby victory on Monday. It won again Tuesday and Wednesday, when it became the first time to score seven wins. The final score in the competition was 7-3.
The victory of the Kiwis ended one of the most unusual editions of the America’s Cup, which was contested for the first time in 1851. This year’s races took place without their usual crowd of visitors, many of whom were kept away by strict coronavirus restrictions New Zealand borders effectively closed to non-citizens. The racing schedule also had to be amended several times to comply with strict and changing closing rules which sometimes resulted in delays in the competition.
The participants were also not like everyone who preceded them. This year’s America’s Cup was contested by a new class of boat: sleek, 75-foot foil monohulls that, when lifted out of the water and riding on their spider-like foils above the waves, were capable of speeds as high as 60 miles. to reach. an hour. The boats did not cut through the water as much as above. And no one has done it better than Team New Zealand.
“Earn champions,” Luna Rossa co-driver Jimmy Spithill said of his opponents after the series ended on Wednesday, according to Radio New Zealand.
During the first six races of the finals, the mantra was simple: win the start, win the race. In each of those races, the team that was first over the starting line was also the first to reach the finish line. The largely drama-free races showcased the skills of the teams and the accuracy of their boats, but it also led to an unwelcome accusation: that the final round was boring.
That changed Monday. Team New Zealand took advantage of fluctuating winds and withdrew the speed that many suspect it had not yet fully shown, to win consecutive races, and break the tie and give the team a 5-3 lead. The Kiwis achieved a fourth consecutive victory on Tuesday, and suddenly the price for years of planning and millions of dollars’ investment feels close enough to touch.
“This team has been in this position before,” Burling said after winning one of the seven New Zealand trophies in one win. “We just want to keep improving, keep moving forward and we’m very excited about another race.”
Light winds forced the teams to abandon the second race on Tuesday, when New Zealand were ready to clinch its triumph, but it only slowed down what many people then saw as the inevitable. Even when Luna Rossa lamented another ‘painful’ defeat on Tuesday, his co-driver Francesco Bruni found no fault in his team’s performances.
Team New Zealand, he apparently said, was simply faster.
“I think we honestly did a fantastic race,” Bruni said. “No remorse.”
Mike Ives contribution made.