The hype begins. At least that's what we sailors hope. With the final confirmation of the participation of a German syndicate in the America's Cup at least, the media's attention towards our sport has risen sharply.
In addition to the commitment that ARD and ZDF will show to sailing in future when they cover the America's Cup 2007 in Valencia, including all the pre-regattas (Act's) that take place beforehand, the German daily newspapers also expressed their enthusiasm for the German campaign at the weekend. The topic was widely discussed throughout the press, giving a foretaste of what we can hopefully expect in the future. Sailing on the upswing.
"Sailing sensation" - this is how Germany's largest daily newspaper "Bild" celebrates the realisation of the German campaign. And the "Financial Times Deutschland" ("FTD"), a business newspaper with a claim to seriousness, even ran the headline "The Miracle of Montabaur" on the second page, emphasising the entrepreneur from Montabaur, Ralph Dommermuth, who allegedly supported the syndicate with 25 million euros and consequently gave the team the name "United Internet Team Germany". The FTD even speaks of the "man who is now making the dream possible".
"20 million euros for the big sailing dream" is the headline of an article in Die Welt about United Internet Team Germany. In a half-page article, "Welt am Sonntag" quotes financier Dommermuth as saying: "I am an entrepreneur, others take care of the sporting side" and "I have very limited knowledge" (as a sailor, editor's note). This emphasises that Dommermuth is not only in the spotlight as a sailing enthusiast, but above all as a calculating businessman. You have to leave emotions out of it, says the financier, after all he is dealing with shareholders' money. And he really doesn't feel like the saviour of German sailing.
However, the "Kieler Nachrichten" ("KN"), which devotes an entire page to the topic of United Internet Team Germany, sees it a little differently. "Dommermuth wants to provide independent, up-to-date reporting on his Internet portals. This alone allows him to reach half of all German Internet users - up to 16 million people." In his commentary, "KN" editor Ralf Abratis sheds light on a somewhat critical, perhaps even rather rousing side: "The German team has started, but is still a long way from reaching its goal." He is alluding to the major organisational tasks now facing the team, such as putting together a powerful sailing crew and finding, building or buying one or more training or competition boats.
Christian Zaschke from the "Süddeutsche Zeitung" ("SZ") comments on the events with almost rapturous enthusiasm. He does point out the danger of throwing the money out of the window or, as he says, seeing it disappear into a hole in the water. But then he takes up the cudgels in favour of sailing: "Seeing an America's Cupper at full speed on the sea is a fantastic sight, 17 men working hard on board, and the result is ideally a wonderful lightness. As the Germans have managed to get a campaign off the ground, we will see these images more often in this country in future. Anyone who likes sailing can therefore be quite happy about the investment made by internet millionaire Dommermuth, regardless of whether it makes sense or is profitable to throw your money into a hole in the water." Incidentally, the "SZ" devotes half a page to the topic!
FAZ.NET writes: " The German syndicate's decision to forgo participation in the month after next (in the first Act, editor's note) in favour of accepting a penalty fee could be dangerous, as the team would make itself legally vulnerable. It wouldn't be the first time that a participant has got caught up in the complicated regulations of the America's Cup - with consequences that could even lead to exclusion. But joy and hope should outweigh any concerns for now."
The "Hamburger Abendblatt" devoted an entire page to the event and ran the headline: "17 men reach for the legendary 'Kanne'."
Finally, an excerpt from Tina Kaiser's commentary in the "Welt am Sonntag": "This is the first time a racing yacht has sailed under the local flag in 2007. We think that's good. After all, the man could have bought a rocket trip with the Russians or a fleet of cars. ... Dommermuth shows patriotism - a rare blessing given the plague of locusts. We would like to see more Dommermuths."
