The last qualifying regattas were finally cancelled

The final three races of the America’s Cup preliminary rounds, initially temporarily suspended on Sunday due to weather, have been definitively postponed until Monday, organizers announced.

A few minutes before the start of the first race between the French Orient Express and Ineos Britannia in the middle of the afternoon, the organizers finally announced the abandonment of the three races of the day due to the lack of wind. On the waters of Barcelona, ​​Sunday was marked by many reversals of fortune for the Blues, in search of a first qualification in the semi-finals in this competition since 1992.

While the AC75s had left the port at the end of the morning to start the matches, the storm that had passed over the city had pushed the organizers to ask all the competitors to return to the hangars for the first time. But the sailors of Orient Express, lacking experience on a flying boat that they only received in April, remained on the water to train, damaging the hull of their sailboat when it was buried.

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A few hours later, the organizers finally announced the resumption of the regattas at 15:35, forcing the French challenge to carry out express repairs at the quayside to arrive on time on the starting line. But once the two teams had reached the water, the organization postponed the start of the round several times in the absence of wind, before announcing at 16:10 the cancellation of the clashes for the day.

“To be completely honest, we’re happy to get our baby back in the shed. We weren’t 100% sure we’d be able to race.”declared French coach Thierry Douillard, shortly after the announcement. Postponed to Monday, this final day of the first round is crucial for the French challenge. Last in the standings (1 win 6 losses), they absolutely must win against the British (5-2).

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At the same time, the Swiss team of Alinghi (4th, 2-5) must lose in the 2nd regatta against the Italian team of Luna Rossa (6-1) for the Blues to keep a chance of qualifying for the semi-finals. Then tied, the two teams would face each other in a play-off match for the 4th and final qualifying place.

American Magic (3rd, 4-4), Ineos Britannia and Luna Rossa are already assured of being in the final draw. The winner of this draw will face the New Zealanders to try to win the silver ewer, the oldest sporting trophy in the world, in October.

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