America’s Cup: Alinghi Red Bull Racing drops second rig in 12 knots of wind

by Magnus Wheatley, America’s Cup Media, August 20, 15:38 UTC
21 August 2024

During training for the Louis Vuitton Preliminary Regatta, which begins on Thursday, August 22nd, Alinghi Red Bull Racing experienced a rigging defect on board “BoatOne”.

In a statement on social media, Alinghi Red Bull Racing Co-General Manager Silvio Arrivabene confirmed that all team members were safe and the boat had been safely returned to its dock in Port Vell under tow: “Today there was a rigging error during the early practice phase on BoatOne. All on board are safe and an investigation will be carried out in due course. In the meantime, the team remains fully focused on the race.”

For the Swiss team, this is already the second rig defect that occurred on June 13 during training.

According to PredictWind, today there was a southerly breeze averaging 12 knots on Barceloneta beach and calm seas.

The fact that Alinghi Red Bull Racing “remains fully focused on racing” is a good indicator that the team has a contingency plan in place, and the entire Louis Vuitton 37th America’s Cup community wishes the Swiss team a speedy return to action.

Alinghi Red Bull Racing is scheduled to compete against Orient Express Racing Team in the first race of the Louis Vuitton Preliminary Regatta on Thursday 22 August at 14:00 CET.

For more pictures by Gilles Martin-Raget click here