Three weeks before the start of the America's Cup final on 15 February, the pace of the two rivals is getting tougher. The New Zealand water police have caught an Alinghi motorboat illegally entering the Kiwis' training zone.
She imposed a fine of 5000 euros.
"This was the latest incident in a series of breaches of the agreement," said an Auckland police spokesman. "We have had many discussions with both parties to stop this behaviour. The penalty is one of the measures we have decided to take.
The teams have clear instructions on what they can and cannot do. Today, one of Alinghi's tenders advanced to the centre of Team New Zealand's training area. It was a clear violation of the agreements. It was a blatant provocation right in front of one of our police boats. We couldn't ignore that."
The teams have been allocated special areas where they can train and test undisturbed, as stipulated in Article 13 of the America's Cup protocol. The police have taken on the task of monitoring compliance with the rule using patrol boats, as both opponents have already complained several times about alleged espionage attacks.
Team New Zealand did not comment on the latest incident. Alinghi apologised to the police and Team New Zealand and expressed its regret. The tender had been borrowed by two inexperienced contract employees who had unintentionally travelled through the zone. They were looking for another Alinghi tender.
