Conquering the world Conquering the world
“We are yellow, we are blue, we are Swedish, who are you?” was the rallying cry from the men in yellow shirts.
“Come on England, come on England!” replied the men in white.
This was the scene at the Victory Challenge base on Tuesday night when the team opened its doors to sailors, families and friends to watch the Swedes play England in the World Cup. It had the potential to be a divisive match for Victory Challenge where the majority of the sailors are Swedes but with a strong British contingent as well.
“It has been 38 years since England has won over Sweden in a football match,” said skipper Magnus Holmberg, trying to stir things up. “And if the Brits win tonight, they will have a very hard time on board the boat the rest of the week!”
In the best possible result for the future of Victory Challenge, the game ended in a 2-2 draw - an even result that you’ll never see in an America’s Cup Match. With the result both teams advance to the next stage of the competition.
Meanwhile, the scene in the Victory Challenge base will no doubt be repeated time and again amongst the 12 teams of the 32nd America’s Cup over the next few weeks as the World Cup grinds along.
Alessandro
Source: www.americascup.com
A special guest in the Port America’s Cup A special guest in the Port America’s Cup 
With Valencia Louis Vuitton Act 12, the last regatta period of 2006, having started, the environment in the Port America’s Cup has changed. It’s busier, with people hustling around - the team members are working hard, as are the organisers. The public crowds stroll at a leisurely pace, soaking up the atmosphere and the sunshine.
The “Veles e Vents” building dominates the Port America’s Cup. Its a space that is part public area and partly reserved for special guests of the event. Today when I approach the building, it is even busier than usual. There are a lot of cars parked in front, and a group of students are here on a visit to the Port America’s Cup.
Suddenly, the children shout with enthusiasm at the arrival of an official car. The door opens and it is Prince of Spain! He has come today to sail with Desaf o Espa ol, the Spanish team, as 18th man.
It’s so strange to take a gentle morning walk in the Port America’s Cup and have the atmosphere turn electric so quickly. The wide variety of people is one of the characteristics of the 32nd America’s Cup you never know who you’re going to bump into maybe even a Prince!
Cristina
Source: www.americascup.com
America’s Cup racing returns to New York America’s Cup racing returns to New York 
The New York Yacht Club was home to the America’s Cup for 132-years. Now a form of Cup racing is back in New York, but on a smaller scale.
The race course is on a small lake in Central Park. The host of the racing wasn’t the NYYC but the Central Park Model Boat Club, where USA 87 (like BMW ORACLE Racing) and SUI 75 (like Alinghi), did battle. Thus the defender and the challenger of record tangled in International One Metre model boats.
The Model Club was founded in 1961 and has had a brush with the America’s Cup before. John Bertrand, the winning Australian skipper in 1983, showed up at the park to race against the members.
So, although it wasn’t quite on the same scale as the racing in Valencia, the American team will be hoping the model boats foreshadowed an eventual Cup match-up in 2007 on the Mediterranean Sea.
Source: www.americascup.com
China Team - conquering a country China Team - conquering a country
The America’s Cup rewards experience like few other sports. For evidence, take a look at the people involved with the top four teams on the 2006 Louis Vuitton ACC Championship. There simply aren’t too many rookies on board. It’s hard enough to tackle the America’s Cup as an experienced challenger, with all the intellectual property, hardware and know-how gained from previous campaigns.
Source: www.americascup.com
Ready, aim, fire: the ‘Tomatina de Bu ol’ Ready, aim, fire: the ‘Tomatina de Bu ol’ 
The small town of Bu ol in the province of Valencia celebrated the ‘Tomatina de Bu ol’ today, one of the most unique festivals in Spain. It’s part battle, part sport and all about chaotic fun.
The idea couldn’t be simpler: thousands of people throw tomatoes at each other in the streets of this town, some 40 km west of Valencia.
Last year there were over 40 000 participants, throwing more than 100 000 kilograms of tomatoes. Even more are expected to participate this year.
It all started in 1945, when a group of young men started to throw tomatoes at each other during a fight. The following year the experience was repeated, just for fun this time, and since then it has been celebrated every year on the last Wednesday of August.
Today, the quiet town of Bu ol is filled with tourists from all over the world who come to participate, or just to watch and enjoy the party.
But if the Tomatina is spectacular, no less impressive is the way the people of the town clean up their streets afterwards. By early afternoon there will be no evidence of the ‘battle’ from the morning people here have the clean-up down to a science 61 previous editions of the festival to practice certainly helps!
Source: www.americascup.com
Farr 40 glory for Mascalzone Latino Farr 40 glory for Mascalzone Latino
Vincenzo Onorato, the man behind the America’s Cup team Mascalzone Latino-Capitalia, has achieved a long-standing sailing goal by winning the Farr 40 world championships. The Farr 40 class is among the most competitive fleets in the world, attracting top sailors as crew for the owners, who steer the boats.
Source: www.americascup.com