The partnership, which will be described as ‘TEAMORIGIN racing with Jaguar’ comes under the umbrella of the Jaguar Academy of Sport, which aims to recognise, celebrate and inspire the very best of British sporting talent and success.

The deal helps Jaguar strengthen its environmental credentials, not only through the associations of a wind-powered sport, but also through signing up to TEAMORIGIN’s ‘Race for Change’ which compels partners of the team to adhere to strict environmental goals monitored by the Carbon Trust.

Sir Keith Mills, Team Principal, TEAMORIGIN, commented:

“We are absolutely delighted to welcome Jaguar as our partner. There is a superb fit and alignment of purpose between TEAMORIGIN and Jaguar. Jaguar is clearly one of the most revered and iconic British brands and, just as Jaguar is now taking on and beating the best in the automotive world, so our mission is to take on and beat the best in the world on the water. The fit is further enhanced through our shared commitment to improve our environmental performance.”

Geoff Cousins, Managing Director, Jaguar UK commented:

“To partner with TEAMORIGIN is a fantastic opportunity for Jaguar. We are looking forward to the first appearance this summer at the 1851 Cup event, an exciting competition, which will see Britain’s best sailing talent compete against the current holders of The America’s Cup. It’s a mouth-watering prospect and one we are proud to support. This is a serious British endeavour, which fits perfectly with the recently launched Jaguar Academy of Sport, which is all about investing in the future of British Sporting talent.”

TEAMORIGIN’s newly branded livery will appear during Cowes Week and will feature striking Jaguar branding on both the hull and sails. The spinnaker will feature a Jaguar leaper in Union Jack Motif, the symbol of the Jaguar Academy of Sport.

Ben Ainslie, Skipper and Helmsman of TEAMORIGIN,commented:

“TEAMORIGIN’s goal is to win the America’s Cup for Great Britain, to achieve this we need to engage the support of like minded partners. In Jaguar, we can see great synergies where they share our passion for sport and competition at the highest level.”

More Automotive Sailing Sponsorship News…

Nevertheless, the project to make the next America’s Cup a televisual feast has begun and sceptics are hopeful that something good will come out of the investment. Popular sailing blog, Valencia Sailing said:

If this is not a genuine, open and open-minded attempt at making the America’s Cup and sailing much more accessible to the media then I’ll be damned! As you’ll see in the photos there are plenty of cameras, cameramen and photographers, some of them in the most unusual places. Some of the ideas will certainly turn out to be useless, impractical or even stupid. However, I’m sure that some others will give us great footage. Unless you try all of them, you’ll never know if they work or not.

16 cameras captured over four hours of sailing in a combined 60 hours of video as Russell Coutts and James Spithill of BMW ORACLE Racing tested two RC44 monohulls side by side in a series of close-proximity maneuvers.

Three onboard cameramen (two on one boat) augmented the fixed and remote control cameras, and upwards of 25 microphones, including surround-sound microphones, captured the crews’ voices and ambient noise.

Russell Coutts said:

“I thought we certainly achieved what we set out at the beginning of the day, which was to get baseline viewing angles for comparison later in the weekend when we try to alter the racecourse and carry out similar exercises in X40 multihulls. “This evaluation process is all about testing new ideas, and we did that.”

Filming the action is one thing, but there is also a sense that the rules might have to be changed to force sailors to break habits. The official statement from yesterday’s sailing gives some clues to some of the ideas that organisers have for more exciting sailing:

The action became intense when the start box was limited to five boatlengths in width and depth. Required to stay inside the box, the two crews circled around each other for three minutes before breaking off to head to the start line.

The aim is to have the footage available to view on the blog of the official America’s Cup web site so that the public can comment, but even with the technological grunt of ORACLE behind the project, getting 60 hours of Video onto the internet is a challenge. The HD footage is still being ‘ingested’.

More America’s Cup News…

I’m a 40 yo ex NAVY helicopter rescue swimmer, avid catamaran sailor and current Photographer, video director and producer. I have some great ideas that will go unheard with this (age) limitation.

“All three represented a nice mix of shot composition, artistry and effects to make them appealing to watch.”

The statement opens with:

The America’s Cup is the world’s third-largest sporting competition, after the Olympics and soccer’s World Cup.

Of course it depends on how you define largest, but the statement doesn’t stand up to a lot of scrutiny. It’s certainly not the 3rd largest in terms of teams, competitors or countries competing, or number of spectators.

It is America though, and sports like Rugby don’t mean much to the population of San Francisco. For example, Deloitte estimates that the Rugby World Cup has the potential to generate up to £2.1 billion (yes that’s GBP) in economic benefits while capital expenditure costs are among the lowest for an event of  such magnitude.

In a list of 200 valuable sporting properties compiled by Sports Pro Magazine, the America’s Cup comes in 71st based on the event in 2007, which most agree to be the best ever held.

But the value of the property and the economic impact are different things and an American venue has advantages of spectator and media access. If San Francisco gets it right, then the value to the City could be enormous. Just as Valencia used the America’s Cup to position itself as a city capable of hosting major events and securing an F1 Grand Prix as a result, San Francisco could use the America’s Cup to regenerate parts of the city and create jobs.

The headline numbers from the report released yesterday show that the economic impact of the America’s Cup could total $1.4 billion and create 8,840 jobs.

The report, titled The America’s Cup: Economic Impacts of a Match on San Francisco Bay, was prepared by The Bay Area Council Economic Institute (BACEI) and Beacon Economics.

The report found that the increase in overall economic activity in San Francisco hosting the 34th America’s Cup could be on the order of $1.4 billion, almost three times the estimated impact of hosting the Super Bowl ($300-$500 million). Additional taxes alone to the City’s General Fund are expected to net more than $13 million, based on more than $24 million in revenue, and an estimated $11 million in tourism related costs. The potential increase in employment surrounding the event could be on the order of 8,840 jobs.

Analysis of economic impacts from prior America’s Cups, specifically Valencia 2007 serves as starting point for this analysis. This analysis makes a number of assumptions: the infrastructure costs and spending will be several billion dollars less (Valencia built a massive marina and channel, hotels, transit etc); spectator attendance will be considerably larger (SF is already an established international destination and amphitheater allows for better viewing); the media’s presence will be larger (broadcasting the races is likely to be significantly more desirable for the international media); the presence of super yachts will be smaller (SF not a tradition super yacht destination due to weather and Pacific location).

More America’s Cup News…

The trials, July 22-25, will help confirm certain parameters of the new yacht, including reduced crew numbers to place a premium on boat-handling. Not only will the format of racing and type of boat come under scrutiny, but also television production.

The America’s Cup Media Evaluation Team has solicited opinions from a wide array of broadcasters, digital media and technology companies in Europe and the U.S. on how to make the racing more dramatic on-line, on-screen and on TV. Accepted standards of Cup racing are being challenged in the trials and no thought will be ignored in the quest to create the most compelling television production and delivering it to the widest-ever audience.

It’s an interesting process. Many sports have adapted their original format in order to attract a different audience. Twenty-Twenty cricket is the complete opposite of a 5 day Test match and Rugby 7′s opens up the game and makes it quicker, but neither of these formats have replaced the original version at the top level. The Ashes is still a series of 5 Day tests and the Rugby World Cup uses the full complement of players.

This week, the 150 year old Open Championship is being broadcast on the BBC in the UK. Only the most die hard fans care what clubs or balls are being used. The sport is popular because of the personalities – the stars are the players. Personally, I don’t find golf the most interesting televisual experience, but organisers haven’t felt the need to play with the format too much. The Open has a facebook page with over 12,0oo fans and hundreds of men and women are tweeting about the event.  The Open doesn’t see the need to make the game of golf any more interesting or ‘extreme’.

Nevertheless, BMW ORACLE are going to test the waters – literally, to see how the America’s Cup might be able to be made ‘better’. Russell Coutts says:

“We are testing many different concepts. Would making the first leg downwind instead of upwind be better? Can you have exciting boat-on-boat action with multihulls? Are there alternative race course formats which might provide more overtaking opportunities?” “Only by reviewing the accepted wisdom can we decide if there are smarter ways to challenge crews and excite fans.”

The trials will be conducted with two pairs of X40 catamarans and RC44 sloops. 3D and HD cameras will be experimented with to see if the onboard action is more dramatically portrayed, and the race format testing will include downwind and reaching starts.

Guest helmsmen such as Roman Hagara of Austria and Murray Jones of New Zealand will lead the crews aboard the X40s. James Spithill will be at the helm of one of the two RC44 yachts. They will race short-handed, eight-person crews to see if that adds a level of drama to boat handling that would be compelling for television.

More America’s Cup News…

Discussions have been terminated with Juan K, who designed the new TP52 for the team’s 2010 Audi Med Cup campaign. A short statement on the team’s website reads:

Grant Simmer, who joined TEAMORIGIN in June after 10 years with Alinghi in various senior roles, including design coordinator, has been undertaking a review of the team’s design options. Simmer holds a strong view that with a new design rule soon to be announced, teams need to be in a position to be able to build their design capabilities to reflect the new rule.

As preparations for the next America’s Cup gather momentum, several weeks of discussions have taken place between TEAMORIGIN and JYD. Last week however, TEAMORIGIN decided to take an alternative approach than the one offered by JYD and, as a result, terminated discussions with JYD.

More TEAMORIGIN News…

Since the Golden Gate Yacht Club won the right to defend the cup in February, the City has been preparing a proposal to host the event utilizing assets along the southern waterfront, and seeking early support from key local stakeholders. The announcement allows the City to leverage national resources and make this a coast-to-coast campaign.

Mayor Newsom said:

“The San Francisco Bay Area is blessed with physical assets that are unmatched anywhere in the world. This announcement allows us to leverage resources throughout the country to ensure that 34th America’s Cup is defended in America.”

San Francisco Bay does form a natural amphitheatre - unlike some previous cups, where racing was held far offshore and viewable only by spectators in boats. San Francisco has a compelling case that from the public shoreline, including Marina Green, Crissy Field, to the Marin headlands, Angel Island, Alcatraz and Fisherman’s Wharf, to its skyscrapers, the viewing platforms are unlimited. This combined with the City’s existing hotel, restaurant and cultural infrastructure, makes San Francisco the world class city it is and an ideal host for the America’s Cup.

Hosting major events is sometimes a game where the rich get richer and the poor get poorer. Once a city has built the physical and social infrastructure to host a major event, it can leverage those assets to attract more. San Francisco has extensive recent experience in hosting major international sporting events, including the 2008 Beijing Olympic Torch Relay, Major League Baseball All Star Game, PGA Tour President’s Cup, and the AMGEN Tour of California.

The Bay Area is also famously home to some of America’s and the World’s most innovative and successful technology companies. This helps to support Larry Ellison’s vision for incorporation of new technologies and media into the America’s Cup.

To advance the City’s campaign the Mayor has commissioned an economic impact study that will be released next week that will illustrate the significant financial benefits to the local, state and federal economies should San Francisco secure the host city rights. The Mayor is also forming a national America’s Cup Organizing Committee (ACOC) to marshal the private and corporate support necessary to win the campaign.

Additionally, the City has already secured significant local support including resolutions, adopted unanimously from: the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, the Port Commission, the Bay Conservation and Development Commission, and the Recreation and Parks Commission, as well as letters of support from the Golden Gate National Recreation Area, Metropolitan Transportation Commission, Water Emergency Transportation Agency, San Francisco Bar Pilots Association, Port of Oakland, the San Francisco Convention and Visitor’s Bureau, and San Francisco Airport, among others.

The City and its partners are eager to work with Golden Gate Yacht Club and the BMW ORACLE Racing team to finalize the proposed racing facilities on the land and water. Working with the State and federal governments the City will secure the necessary approvals and commitments to meet the team’s stated deadline of selecting the 34th America’s Cup venue by the end of 2010.

More America’s Cup News…

A statement issued by BMW ORACLE today says:

San Francisco has put forward a strong, well rounded venue proposal, and is now the only city in the USA under consideration to host the 34th America’s Cup match.

The announcement gives San Francisco an added level of security which will enable it to petition for investment from state and national sources. Despite being home to some of the country’s most wealthy corporations the city will seek public funds to build the infrastructure required for the event.

San Francisco’s Mayor Gavin Newsom said:

“We are very honored to lead a national effort to host the 34th America’s Cup. Larry Ellison has a transformative vision for hosting the Cup on San Francisco Bay, and we are prepared to leverage the nation’s support to make this a coast-to-coast campaign and to realize that vision.”

San Francisco beat other US candidate cities including Newport Rhode Island, San Diego and Long Beach. While Newport had history on its side, San Francisco seems to fit better with the ‘New Deal’ America’s Cup that BMW ORACLE are envisioning. San Francisco also has the ability to bring sailing to the city. Russell Coutts said:

“Our team has said from the outset that San Francisco and the Bay Area have the potential to provide a superb stage on which to host a memorable America’s Cup. Larry Ellison, has called the Bay ‘a fantastic natural amphitheatre’.”

It is hard to imagine a US based team not staging the America’s Cup in home waters. While Swiss based Alinghi were forced to hold the event outside of Switzerland due to the rules of the Deed of Gift, an American defender would have a hard job of selling a non-American venue to the US public. Were BMW ORACLE to choose a European venue – the long term impact on the sport of sailing in the USA would be significant.

Nevertheless, some European governments are more aggressive than the US when it comes to allocating public funds and doing deals to attract major sporting events like the America’s Cup. If a European city comes up with a deal like the one that lured the Volvo Ocean Race to Alicante, then the Defender will have to choose between pleasing the US public and money. Proposals from European cities are more likely to be used as leverage with San Francisco to come up with a better deal.

More America’s Cup News…

The 1851 Cup will recreate an historic race around the Isle of Wight which was won by the yacht ‘America’ and gave rise to the America’s Cup. Racing will be held as close to West Cowes as possible to give spectators a close-up view. On Thursday 5th of August, TEAMORIGIN and BMW ORACLE will race clockwise around the Island, replicating the direction sailed in 1851.

On the 3rd, 4th of August, 3 match races will be held each day. Another ‘Round the Island’ Race will take place on the 6th of August.

The publicity for the event and the ‘cut and paste’ press say:

The two hottest match racing skippers in the world, TEAMORIGIN’s Ben Ainslie, and BMW ORACLE Racing’s James Spithill, will lead their teams contesting the 1851 Cup. Britain’s TEAMORIGIN will be the be first potential challenger for the next America’s Cup to race head-to-head with BMW ORACLE Racing, winners of the 33rd America’s Cup.

Now ‘hottest’ is a subjective term – perhaps the PR folk are talking about Ben’s fashion shoots for Henri Lloyd or some ‘hot or not’ competition for match-racing skippers that we don’t know about. In the other races where potential challengers for the next America’s Cup race head-to-head with BMW ORACLE, the  Louis Vuitton Trophy, Ainslie and Spithill have not been the pick of the bunch. In the last event BMW ORACLE finished 9th out of 10 and TEAMORIGIN came in 7th. According to ISAF, in the official World Match Racing rankings, Ainslie is 3rd after Adam Minoprio and Torvar Mirsky and James Spithill is not in the top 25.

Nevertheless, Australian James Spithill the youngest-ever America’s Cup skipper, will go into battle against Great Britain’s Ben Ainslie, aged 33, Skipper and Helmsman of TEAMORIGIN, four times Olympic medallist with 3 golds and 1 silver. Ainslie said:

“This will be an incredible event which I am sure will capture the imagination of sports fans across the UK. We relish the idea of taking on the Defenders in our home waters. We have a busy season in 2010 and The 1851 Cup is one that we are all particularly looking forward to.”

James Spithill, Skipper of BMW ORACLE Racing added:

“Ben’s a mate and fantastic sailor. Having said that, we’re really looking forward to taking the fight to him and his guys. For our team, this is a key stepping stone from having been victorious challengers in February when we beat Alinghi, to becoming a unit that has to defend the 34th America’s Cup.”

More America’s Cup News Here…

WYRF: What are the key changes you are introducing for the next America’s Cup?

Russell Coutts: We are obviously working in a lot of different directions. I think by now everybody has understood that we want fair rules; one of our priorities is also massively improved media output, particularly on screens whether that’s television or other devices. We are doing a lot of research on technology and formats, and will do some tests in July. For example, some people pretend that you can’t do match race with multihulls, or that you need slow boats; this needs to be confirmed. It is very important for Larry and I to make sailing more TV friendly and understandable by a large public; otherwise the sport simply won’t move forward.

WYRF: How do you respond to those that are saying you are taking a long time to announce the format of the next Cup?

Russell Coutts: It is true. We are just trying to do things well and to take the right decisions: it’s a heavy responsibility and a major task. The choice of the venue is obviously key, and a lot of things depend on it, including the boat. We also want to bring the costs down and need to be very careful with the decisions we take. The number of crew is one element: typically personnel accounts for 60 % of the budget of a campaign. Other elements include sensible restrictions on material and technology.

WYRF: Will you develop a circuit of pre-regattas?

Russell Coutts: Yes, absolutely. This concept started in 1997 and was perpetuated in 2000 and 2007 with the Acts, which were good. We need to move up from this, particularly with regards to the logistics, which will play a huge role. We also need a format that really has a meaning. Our objective is to increase the value of the America’s Cup for all teams and investors and we therefore need more events.

WYRF: Do you have a target number of teams?

Russell Coutts: We clearly prefer eight top level teams to fifteen and half of them disappearing half way through. Considering the current state of the economy, eight teams is a realistic number. Our goal is to build commercial value for the teams and partners; if this leads to more strong teams in the future, then great!

WYRF: How can you guarantee that the process for the next Cup will be democratic and that you won’t have an edge over your competitors?

Russell Coutts: We have hired some people who are not part of our team or defence organization and are working on the rules for a new boat and the ‘on the water’ race organization. We will announce the rules a long time ahead of the event and this will guarantee its fairness. We want the rules to be in place before people start joining, so that teams and partners know what they sign-up for. We have already circulated a draft Protocol to a small group of people and soon a bigger group will receive it. When the rules come out it will be clear to everyone that they are fair.

WYRF: How do you concretely consult the other teams considering that the registrations are not open?

Russell Coutts: At this initial stage we consult people who have a lot of experience. Nobody is excluded; there’s just a natural selection as we speak to teams and people who have already participated in the America’s Cup. In the next two months we will identify potential new teams and speak to them. Basically what we want is to consult the event’s stakeholders. Then we will take the decisions. We can’t use a system of votes, because we need to consider all the aspects of the organization, TV, logistics etc…

WYRF: Do you have a preference between monohulls and multihulls?

Russell Coutts: I honestly don’t, and as a team we don’t either; what we want is the best event.

WYRF: There are many rumours concerning the venue. How open is the selection process and what are the criteria?

Russell Coutts: Well, San Francisco is an appealing venue to Larry as everyone knows. But the selection process remains open, and it is not restrained to the US. The first criteria will be the sailing conditions, as we want to create a great event. Delays kill the sport and we must avoid this. I must say that I am gratified to see how motivated the potential venues are: the interest is huge.

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