The British could hardly believe what had happened to them 50 years ago: Team Germany, of all teams, had snatched the Admiral's Cup from the defending champions in their home waters off the Isle of Wight. Even England's Prime Minister Edward "Ted" Heath, who had left a Commonwealth conference in Canada early to at least skipper his "Morning Cloud" for the British team in the final Fastnet Race, was unable to turn the tide. "Sailor Ted", who had also sensationally won the Sydney Hobart Race in 1969 and thus gained such a high profile that it spurred him on to be elected Prime Minister in 1970, was "not amused".
Half a century ago, a successful property developer from Hamburg, a Hanseatic Vaseline manufacturer and a chocolate maker from Aachen changed German sailing forever with their coup in 1973: Albert Büll, Hans-Otto Schümann and Dieter Monheim won the Admiral's Cup as outsiders, surprisingly and convincingly. Edward Heath had also said before the start of the Cup when asked about the Germans' chances: "Absolutely none."
When sailing moved into the limelight
And yet, ten years after the first participation of a German contingent in the unofficial world championship for offshore teams, the crews of the successful trio catapulted themselves into the sporting history books with the boats "Saudade", "Rubin IV" and "Carina III". Sailing suddenly moved into the limelight. "Britannia rules the waves" no longer applied in the Solent. Neither the overconfident Americans nor the Australians, who were favoured by the British bookmakers, were able to stop Team Germany on its wave of success. "Germany's leap to the top of the world", was the headline in YACHT in August 1973.
Hans-Otto Schümann, the Anglophile father of German ocean sailing, had paved the way to triumph with his early trips and participation in English regattas. However, until 1973, the Germans were never powerful enough as a team to seriously challenge the English-speaking regatta establishment. This changed radically in the ninth Admiral's Cup edition.
While the German Admiral's Cup yachts had often been too unfashionable up to that point, almost a dozen brand new boats sailed off Helgoland and Kiel for the 1973 Cup competitions. With Schümann's "Rubin IV" and Büll's "Saudade", two Sparkman & Stevens designs proved to be so dominant that there was no doubt about their qualification for the team. Büll in particular impressed as a newcomer with his first own Cup yacht. Together with tactician Berend Beilken, professional current expert Görge Grotkopp and other individualist friends, Albert Büll demonstrated a completely new way of sailing in an efficient team: the crew propelled the "red sow" like a dinghy. Monheim's "Carina III" took third place despite a strong wind at the cross. Berend Beilken's brother Hannes played a major role in her nomination as counsellor, helmsman and sailmaker.
When Team Germany was leading in England after three of four races, a British journalist asked "Lightnin'" skipper Ted Turner whether the Germans would be able to keep their co-favourite Americans at bay. The flamboyant media mogul and later America's Cup winner with "Courageous", also known by the nicknames "The Mouth of the South" and "Captain Outrageous", replied caustically: "In 1942, the Germans also led."
Germany won the Admiral's Cup three times
Büll, Schümann and Monheim were not deterred by such affronts. Out of a total of 48 Cup yachts from 16 nations, "Saudade" sensationally won the individual Cup classification with fourth place in the Channel Race, victories in the RORC Trophy and the RYS Trophy and sixth place in the Fastnet Race 1973. Büll's Rakete was the only boat in the world-class fleet to finish in the top ten in every race. Schümann's "Rubin IV" contributed to the team's success with sixth place in the individual classification, "Carina III" with eighth place.
The "German Coup" triggered a golden era of sea sailing: Germany won the Admiral's Cup three more times: in 1983, 1985 and 1993. The British remained the record winners with eight victories until the last edition in 2003. After several failed attempts to revive it, the Admiral's Cup is now to be revived in 2025 with two-boat national teams on the initiative of the traditional organisers from the Royal Ocean Racing Club.
German victories in the Admiral's Cup
- 1973:"Saudade", "Ruby IV", "Carina III"
- 1983:"Sabina", "Pinta", "Outsider"
- 1985:"Outsider", "Ruby VIII", "Diva"
- 1993:"Pinta", "Ruby XII", "Container"
Interview with Albert Büll
A life for sailing Büll on the golden era of tall ships, the unsportsmanlike English Premier and cruising sailing
Albert Büll, you have achieved many successes on large keel yachts in your career, but where do your sailing roots lie?
We are a real Hamburg family. I started out on the Alster. That's where we did our schoolwork on a dinghy. I sailed with SV Oevelgönne, but was not a club member. I joined the Norddeutscher Regatta Verein in the 1960s.
What kind of dinghies were they shortly after the Second World War?
Essentially pirates. There weren't that many boats yet. I didn't really get into sailing until I was 26 or 27, when I had completed my vocational training.
What drew you back?
My wife Christa and I were still very young when we had our first of two daughters. We bought a cruising boat for the family. At the same time, I sailed ocean races on two-tonne boats, the cup yachts "Diana" and "Rubin". In 1971, I sailed with the HVS club ship "Hamburg VII" from Cape Town to Rio - my first major ocean regatta.
That's when you had the idea of building your own boat ...
Exactly. The name was also created on board. "Saudade" comes from Portuguese and means longing, love, homesickness, wanderlust and much more. We had little wind during our 29-day crossing from Cape Town to Rio. I read a lot about the history of the discovery of South America. The word "Saudade" often came up, which fascinated me.
What happened next?
After my return, I took a close look at it and placed the order in autumn 1972. In 1973 "Saudade" was delivered by Royal Huisman. A Sparkman & Stephens, 47 feet. I had teamed up with the Englishman Arthur Slater. He had won the Admiral's Cup with British Prime Minister Edward Heath in 1971. Slater also wanted to build a new boat. We said to each other: "Even though we will be rivals in the Cup, we still want to have a fast ship built fairly together." He did not qualify for the English team with his "Prospect of Whitby".
How was the German team for the 1973 Cup formed?
Hans-Otto Schümann, who had been sailing for much longer, first on the Elbe and later in the North Sea, played a key role. He first took part in the Admiral's Cup in 1963, back then with "Diana II" and "Inschallah".
In 1967, 1969 and 1971, the German teams never finished higher than mid-table ...
We really wanted to change that! Eleven ships were built or purchased in Germany for 1973. The competitions took place at the North Sea Week and the Kiel Week. There was a tough battle between "Carina III" and "Windliese", especially for third place in the team. "Rubin" and "Saudade" were seeded early.
What kind of crew were you working with?
It was just a circle of friends, not a single professional. They didn't have any professionals, they just went sailing together. Berend Beilken, the sailmaker, had a major influence on the crew. He became my helmsman and brought a number of good sailors with him. With Görge Grotkopp, we had a current technician with us, which was very good. We had even fewer electronics on board and had to do a lot of things by hand.
Did you know the English territory before your Cup premiere?
I don't think any of us had ever sailed in the Solent before. That's why we travelled to England immediately after winning the qualification. We trained intensively there for four weeks and took part in all the regattas. We had this absolute determination to beat the English and the Americans. That brought success: with "Saudade" we were by far the best boat among the 48 participating yachts.
How did you experience your Solent premiere 50 years ago?
The Solent and the Isle of Wight were unlike anything we knew from Kiel or Heligoland. Everything was much more intense! England is a seafaring and sailing nation. When regattas are sailed there, even outside of the Admiral's Cup, such as Cowes Week, which we also took part in, the whole Solent is white with sails. There are not only ocean-going vessels, but also the dinghy fields in between. Then there was this insane tidal current. We didn't know that either. Sailing across the Solent practically means crossing it at around 45 degrees, i.e. keeping 45 degrees ahead to arrive at the buoy on the other side. It was impressive.
And difficult, right?
Our electricity engineer calculated everything in advance and gave us the angles. That fitted! A feeling quickly developed from this. That was the advantage of our preparation.
How did the first race go in sporting terms?
We started the channel race with a Starcut. This was a very flat and pointed spinnaker with a much larger sail area than a genoa, which was chosen when the wind was also relatively sharp, i.e. at 110 or 120 degrees. We set off with the sail in the hope that the wind would shift in our favour. Unfortunately, it didn't work out that way. The Starcut exploded after two miles. However, we quickly had a genoa up and came back from France in fourth place, i.e. in a reasonable position. Rubin" and "Carina" were also good.
The Australians were still the favourites for the shorter triangles?
They had brought two bombers, as we called them: "Ginkgo" and "Apollo II". Our knees trembled when we saw the ships. They were missiles! We had thought that we were the biggest with a centre cockpit. But the Australians had taken a much more radical approach with two centre cockpits or side cockpits. The sailors lay in them and operated the winches from there, so they were much more wind-slippery. "Oh God," we thought, "if we ever beat them." Then we were able to outpace them in the first inshore race and lost a little of our huge respect.
Was "Saudade" as the best boat the key to team victory?
We were so far ahead after three races that we were hard to beat. Only if we failed in the Fastnet Race. The Americans had loudly declared war on the Germans. They were saying that the Germans would be in for a shock. In this mood, we went into the Fastnet Race, which we passed with all three boats in the top ten.
How did you experience the other teams?
The Australians were very sporting and fair. The British were mostly reserved, with increasing respect for our results. But there was also a bit of envy there. That had to do with Ted Heath. He wasn't good at losing. When we won the cup, I stood in for our team leader Hans-Otto Schümann, who had to go home, and went to the other teams with champagne in the trophy. Everyone drank from it. Even the English. Only Heath turned away and left.
Your victory has triggered a huge response in Germany, comparable to the reactions to Willy Kuhweide's Olympic victory in 1964 ...
That surprised us too, because we were so far away. Quite a few journalists came over during the races. There weren't the broadcasting facilities that we have today. The English press also reported intensively.
What impact did the German coup have?
He was the motivator for many other new builds and for people who subsequently joined the clubs and wanted to actively participate in sailing. This was particularly true of the Hamburgischer Verein Seefahrt. This was followed by three more Cup victories and further international successes up to 1993. Suddenly we went to Sardinia. We sailed the Settimana delle Bocche and the Sardinia Cup, which German teams won three times, including with my "Saudade" in 1988. The upswing was triggered by the victory in 1973.
Which people particularly impressed you in 1973?
I felt a very close connection to Hans-Otto Schümann. I was the newcomer, he was the senior, who made a big impression on me and helped me a lot. Later, there was also Willy Illbruck. We were a good offshore community in which we fought tough battles against each other, but were always friendly with each other.
How important was the national aspect of the Cup?
Back then, we all had a German flag sewn onto our team clothing. We weren't sailing for ourselves, but for Germany. I switched to the one-tonner scene back then. I really enjoyed it. I really enjoyed it from 1987 to 1994 with three monohulls.
You had a busy and very successful career. Despite this, or perhaps because of it, you decided to embark on a special project in the mid-nineties ...
I wanted to sail around the world. We built the new ship for this, a 114-foot yacht from Judel/Vrolijk, at Huisman. She arrived in 1994 and from 1996 to 2000 I sailed around the world with interruptions, going back and forth to the office and then sailing for three or four weeks at a time. It was a very, very enjoyable time with family and friends. We visited New Zealand, Australia, South America and South Africa.
After the turn of the millennium, have you been bitten by the regatta bug again?
Yes, we took part in international regattas. With the boat I'm on right now. A Bill Trip, with which we take part in superyacht regattas in Palma and Sardinia and in the St Barths Bucket. In 2015, 2016 and 2017, we even managed a hat-trick of victories in the Loro Piana Superyacht Regatta.
Can't imagine life without a boat?
You could say that. I am attracted by the confrontation with the forces of nature. Light, sun and sea are more intense at sea than on land. The wonderful thing about cruising is that you can do something different every day: swimming, sailing with small or large boats, going into a bay and staying there. But I also need the challenge of regatta sailing. These are opposites that complement each other for me.
Has sailing contributed to your professional success?
Sailing helped a lot, was formative in terms of team spirit, but also in terms of defeats and disappointments. That you can cope better with defeats and see them in a sporting light. They just happen. And spur you on to further achievements. Sailing is a great school. I can only recommend that everyone sends their youngsters out on a boat. It teaches them team spirit. And you are moulded in the team.
Do you follow regatta sport today?
I've occasionally watched the Ocean Race, but I'm not the kind of person who would aspire to something like that. That's not my 'cup of tea', even though Boris Herrmann is certainly a good role model.
Are you interested in Olympic sailing?
Yes, I support Olympic teams in the NRV Olympic Team and watch them closely. I like that, even though I've never taken part in the Olympic Games myself. The NRV is doing very well at the Olympics.
The common thread through your sailing life has long been red boats. How did the unusual choice of colour come about?
It had something to do with aggression. I wanted to enter the circle really aggressively with the first "Saudade". Coca-Cola red was just the right colour for that.
You later switched to green for your maxi yachts. A response to the new era?
No, green technology didn't play a role in the decision (smiles). My boats went green with the circumnavigator in 1994. I wanted to bring a bit more seriousness into it. It's now British Racing Green.
"British" is a good keyword. The Royal Ocean Racing Club has announced a new edition of the Admiral's Cup for 2025. The competition is open to two-boat national teams. What do you think?
I think that's great! I think the two-boat decision makes sense. The rush will perhaps not be as great as it used to be, because everything is much more expensive nowadays. But I believe that with two boats you can get some nations together.
