America's Cup: In the dispute over wind limits: Cup giants on a collision course

Just over a year before the 36th America's Cup, the dispute between Emirates Team New Zealand and the leading Italian team Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli is now going to arbitration - the Cup defenders and the "Challenger of Record" cannot agree on the permissible minimum and maximum wind conditions. The dispute comes as no surprise. Experts have been pointing out for months that the New Zealanders, as defenders, hold a valuable design tool in their hands when it comes to determining the wind conditions. And this is becoming increasingly important due to the delayed delivery of OneDesign parts for the new boats to all teams and the resulting lack of time for the design and construction of the second team yacht.

America's Cup winner and Ineos Team UK consultant Rolf Vrolijk had already pointed out in a YACHT interview in October that the defenders will use this means of shaping the rules. "As always, the defenders still have a big advantage in the Cup: they determine the rules and can build into specific wind windows." Now the challengers, with the Italians as the Kiwis' negotiating partners, are fighting to restrict these wind windows. It is also a battle against time, as the design and production of the second team yacht for both the defender and the four challenger teams has already begun. The designers of all syndicates want and need to know as precisely as possible in which wind ranges sailing is allowed and in which it is no longer permitted.

The so-called "Arbitration Panel" consists of the Australian David Tillett, the Swiss Dr Henry Peter and the New Zealander Graham McKenzie. All three are experienced lawyers who have already been involved in previous Cups. The trio must now make a binding decision on what the teams cannot agree on. This concerns the wind limits for both the Prada Cup challenger series in early 2021 and the 36th America's Cup duel in March 2021. According to the Cup protocol, the agreement should have been reached by 20 December. The failure to do so has now led the potent Cup hunters to the court of arbitration.

The positions of the rivals are clear: the Kiwis are fighting for a maximum wind window of up to 24 knots, while the Italians are aiming for a maximum of 22 knots in the Cup duel and a maximum of 20 knots in the challenger series. The motto is that the smaller the wind window, the more specifically the designers can tailor their boats to it.

The sailing times for the 21st America's Cup have been moved to the afternoons. This allows the wind to stabilise, which in turn offers a greater chance that the planned live broadcasts can take place on time. The defenders also want to keep the wind window as large as possible for this reason; the risk of race cancellations should be minimised. According to the defenders, the challengers' demand for significantly lower wind limits does not reflect normality in Auckland, where sailing regularly takes place in winds of up to 25 knots during normal racing.

The 35th America's Cup off Bermuda also started with this upper limit. It was later lowered to 24 knots by the race organiser shortly before the start of the regatta. The defenders have already been training for months in this cycle with their first AC75 boat "Te Aihe" in winds beyond the 25-knot limit, steeling themselves for demanding conditions. While the defenders and "Challenger of Record" were able to agree on all other regatta conditions, the wind limit remains the bone of contention. The defenders point out that, according to the protocol, the wind windows for the Challenger Series and Cup Duel must be the same. Furthermore, according to the New Zealanders, their sailors pointed out that it is easier to control the futuristic monohull foilers in stronger than in weaker winds, that the Kiwis proved with the recent capsize of their "Te Aihe" and their swift recovery that a capsize does not have to be a knockout criterion.

A few days before Christmas, the new Kiwi Cupper capsized during training in Auckland. However, the crew quickly brought the boat back under control

A simple formula should apply for Cup fans: The larger the wind window, the lower the risk of cancellations in the style of the 32nd America's Cup in Valencia: back then, six race days in a row were cancelled right at the start because the lower wind limit at the time was seven knots, but was not reached. The majority of a ZDF TV team that had travelled to the event with a large contingent ended up leaving almost without having achieved anything. In the current dispute, experts assume that the 20-knot maximum limit proposed by the challengers was brought into play as a deliberately low negotiation figure to avoid a high maximum figure at the end of the negotiation, which the challengers believe would primarily benefit the New Zealanders. According to the protocol, the dispute should be decided within three months of 20 December 2019. The decision-making process is expected to begin with an attempt at mediation, which could be led by arbitration tribunal chairman David Tillett.