America's Cup: Jimmy "flies" overboard and the Kiwis are in a playing mood

Now helmsman James "Jimmy" Spithill has also experienced how quickly you can not only "fly" with one of the new Cup projectiles, but also be thrown off them. In a comparatively harmless training mishap, the skipper of the defenders went overboard because he had become too fast in his sprint to the other side and only had a long jump away from the boat into the water left. "I couldn't stop myself," said the 37-year-old two-time Cup winner later on land with a smile.

Because he could no longer stop his run, his only option was to take a courageous leap into the waters of the Great Sound off Bermuda: Jimmy Spithill's artistic interlude was accompanied by cheerful music by the authors of the clip. This makes it look funny, which is never without danger, but in this case the outcome was not too bad

In the meantime, the Kiwis, the last team to arrive in Bermuda, have settled in and are ready for their first sailing mission with "Aotearoa". The time has come on Sunday. Emirates Team New Zealand is sure to attract the attention of the competition and the public. Many cameras will be rolling and observers will be on duty when the Kiwis' AC50 catamaran makes its debut in the Great Sound. Helmsman Peter Burling will steer it, skipper Glenn Ashby will trim its wing. The crew members will provide the power needed to propel their craft by pedalling. The New Zealanders are the only ones who produce their horsepower not with grinders, but with "cyclists". This is another reason why the experts are looking forward to their performance with great excitement.

The good news for Cup fans and all other teams: although the New Zealanders have been coy for a long time and played the "lone wolf", they have now officially confirmed that they will take part in the next official test regatta from 24 to 28 April and will be very close to the competition on the water for the first time by then at the latest. Race management will decide who they will compete against and when. How meaningful these preliminary encounters will really be remains to be seen, as the lighter winds that are expected for the America's Cup period have rarely prevailed so far, but so far the defenders and the Swedish team Artemis Racing in particular have been able to put themselves in the limelight. One of the most exciting questions: Where will the Kiwis rank in this overture? And can the British, who are among the favourites but have not dominated so far, shift up a gear at the next dress rehearsal?