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As you read this, the 32nd America’s Cup is in full swing. The Defender of the Cup,
Switzerland’s Team Alinghi, is in a showdown with a challenger who has come out on top in the three-year
crucible of competition. After thirteen Louis Vuitton Acts, including fleet (all teams racing simultaneously)
and match (two teams going head-to-head) racing, the eleven challengers for the 32nd America’s Cup entered
the final stage of competition this spring, the Louis Vuitton Cup – the show before the showdown.
The Louis
Vuitton Cup (LVC) began on April 16 in Valencia, Spain (the site of the 32nd America’ Cup),
and concluded on June 12.
In between, the show provided plenty of action.
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The eleven challengers were pitted against each other in the opening phase of the LVC,
which featured two rounds, Rounds Robin One and Two.
Victories in each match, or "Flight," earned the winner two points.
The first
rounds were fought to determine the four teams that would head to the LVC Semifinal.
The four teams with the highest point total would move on.
Breezin’
The racing
got off to a slow start, with Valencia’s characteristic springtime sea breezes mysteriously
absent from the scene. At the top of the leader board, the Americans of BMW Oracle Racing
(BMOR) and Emirates Team New Zealand’s (ETNZ) Kiwis slugged it out while the battle for the fourth
came down to a struggle between the Spaniards of Desafio Español and the Swedes of Victory Challenge.
ETNZ finished on top with 38 points, edging BMOR with 37, Luna Rossa with 35 and Desafio
Español with 29.
As the
winner of the Rounds Robin, ETNZ had the luxury of choosing its opponent. The team chose to race against
Desafio Español, leaving BMOR to go up against Luna Rossa. Each of the pairings raced a best
of nine series. The first team of each pairing to win five races would move on to the final, the battle
for the Louis Vuitton Cup.
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