Just how relaxed the New Zealanders take the affair, which is officially called the Louis Vuitton Cup, was demonstrated yesterday after the compulsory exercise in which they effortlessly beat Luna Rossa for the fifth time: actor and ladies' favourite Tom Cruise and his son Connor were transported to the wheel of the black and red AC72 to sail a lap for the cameras. Initially, the two of them cranked one of the coffee grinders together, but then Cruise Sr. was ordered by team boss Dalton to take the wheel, where he was allowed to chauffeur the cat back to the team base in South Bay under the guidance of Dean Barker. It is interesting to note that Team New Zealand declined requests from media representatives to sail along after the Artemis crash "due to safety concerns".
After this PR performance, the Kiwis, who have been the winners of the preliminary round for some time, will now have a break of almost three weeks. They will sit out the rest of the round robin and the semi-finals of the Louis Vuitton Cup and use the time to overhaul the boat to further improve its performance, said helmsman Dean Barker yesterday, without giving any details. This also means that Artemis will be sailing. If the Kiwis had chosen the other option, namely to sail against an opponent of their choice in the semi-final and selected Luna Rossa, Artemis would effectively have been excluded from the event. However, the Swedes will be able to show in the semi-final that they are also capable of racing on an AC72. However, it is doubtful whether they will be able to give the Italians a surprising leg up.
On Tuesday, Artemis and Team New Zealand would be on the programme. However, as the Kiwis have withdrawn and Artemis have not yet decided whether they want to sail the course without an opponent, this could be the first Louis Vuitton race to start without boats ...
The remaining programme of the Round Robin, Start at 12.15 pm local time (21:15 CEST)
Tuesday 30 July: Artemis against Team New Zeland
Thursday, 1 August: Luna Rossa against Artemis
Louis Vuitton Cup semifinals, 6 to 15 August, Best of Seven, start 13:15 local time (22:15 CEST)
Tuesday 6 August: Artemis against Luna Rossa
The Regatta calendar
