New yacht for Americas Cup

Press, 4 June 1982, Page 28

New yacht for Americas Cup

NZPA-Reuter Perth A yacht billed as an example of the best in 12-metre racing will be unveiled on Monday '. as Western Australia’s challenger for the Americas Cup. Australia II will, be christened by Eileen Bond, wife of Western Australian challenge syndicate chairman, Alan Bond.

. Like the two previous Bond syndicate challengers — Southern Cross (1974) and Australia (1977 and 1980) — it is designed by Ben Lexcen. Both earlier challengers won the right to take on the Americans for the elusive cup but were finally beaten. The challenge executive director, Warren Jones, said that the new yacht was the most sophisticated 12-metre prepared in Australia and equal to the recentlylaunched American yachts Magic and Spirit of America. “Our boat is without any doubt , the state of the art,” Mr Jones said.

Its performance would be

monitored and evaluated by sophisticated computer equipment already installed at the challenge headquarters in Perth. Mr Jones said that the vessel would be left in the designer’s hands until he was happy with it, then it would be ready to start training.

The helmsman for the 1983 Americas Cup Challenge -will be champion dinghy and ocean racing yachtsman, John Bertrand, of Melbourne, who has represented Australia at three- Admirals Cups and three Americas Cup challenges. Sir James Hardy, who skippered Gretel II in 1970, Southern Cross in 1974 and Australia in 1980 will be a back-up and adviser to Bertrand.

The final crew has not yet been chosen but a number of prospective members have been training for several weeks on Apollo 111.

The two other Australian challengers, from New South Wales and Victoria, are still under construction.