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| TOUR CHAMPIONSHIP DOWN TO THE WIRE |
Russell Coutts holds the Swedish Match Cup championship trophy while main trimmer Rasmus Kostner sprays champagne. (Dan Ljungsvik)
Image © Dan Ljungsrik
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The Pizza-La Sailing Team with Yaji-san and Peter Gilmour pictured (left to right). (Dan Ljungsvik)
Image © Dan Ljungsrik
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Jon Ziskind, Andy Horton and Ed Baird (from left) during racing at the Swedish Match Cup. (Dan Ljungsvik)
Image © Dan Ljungsrik
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MARSTRAND, Sweden (June 28, 2005) — Long the jewel of the Swedish Match Tour, the Swedish Match Cup features a greatly decorated array of match-racers, two of whom will square off for the sixth Tour championship.
American Ed Baird, of America’s Cup champion Alinghi, and Australia’s Peter Gilmour, of Pizza-La Sailing Team, are locked in a tussle, tied with 102 points.
If Baird is to win his first Tour championship he must finish no worse than fourth with Gilmour behind him. For Gilmour to repeat as the Tour champ he has to finish ahead of Baird, no matter where they place in the standings.
A public opinion poll on the Swedish Match Tour Web site shows that people believe Gilmour will win the championship. As of today, he led Baird with 64 percent of the vote. (Vote here for who you think will win the championship.) The champion will win a $60,000 bonus from the Tour and a BMW 545i Touring provided by Tour partner BMW.
The 12th annual Swedish Match Cup returns next week, July 4-10, to the small island of Marstrand off Sweden’s west coast for more furious action. Held in the confines of the western approach to Marstrand Harbor, the event is an incredible story of success.
Founded in 1994 by Sweden’s best match-racer, Magnus Holmberg, in conjunction with the Royal Gothenburg Yacht Club, the Swedish Match Cup has grown into one of the best match-racing regattas in the world.
“If the event was to have a chance to develop into a long-term success, we couldn’t start out small and grow from there,” Holmberg said. “We didn’t want the event’s economy to rely on ticket sales, so it was decided not to charge an admission fee.”
The free admission and strong line-up were the decisive reasons why the 1994 premier drew around 30,000 spectators to Marstrand. That number pales in comparison with the record crowd of 150,000 people in 2001, but it was far above expectations.
From the beginning the Swedish Match Cup has always attracted the top-ranked skippers, and this year is no different. Of the 16 teams entered nine represent syndicates entered in the 32nd America’s Cup. Their resumes are an incredible list of success, having won three America’s Cup matches, two Louis Vuitton Cup titles, three Olympic medals and 11 match-racing world championships.
All five past Swedish Match Tour champions – Bertrand Pacé (2000), Magnus Holmberg (2001), Peter Holmberg (2002), Jesper Radich (2004) and Gilmour (2004) – are in the lineup.
There are also four skippers who have won 10 of the previous 11 Swedish Match Cups. Gilmour leads the pack with five victories (1994, ’95, ’97, ’98, ’99). Dean Barker, of Emirates Team New Zealand, and Russell Coutts, of Coutts Racing, have two victories each, and Pacé, of BMW Oracle Racing, has one. Baird is a four-time runner-up at the event (1994, ’95, ’97, ’99), each time to Gilmour.
Coutts is the reigning champion. Sailing with Danish crewmembers Michael Arnhild, Jes Gram-Hansen, Christian Kamp and Rasmus Kostner, Coutts Racing outdueled Gilmour’s Pizza-La Sailing Team to win the championship 2-1.
Marstrand’s tight racecourse will become more restricted with the use of the Swedish Match 40, replacing the DS 37 that has been used in the previous 11 editions. A consortium of companies has purchased a fleet of boats for the event.
A prize purse of SEK849,000 (approximately $114,000) is up for grabs, with SEK280,000 (approximately $37,000) earmarked for the champion.
The Swedish Match Cup will also host a women’s event concurrent with the open regatta. A field of eight teams is slated to compete, including reigning champion Marie Bjorling (SWE), who has won three consecutive championships, and Claire Leroy (FRA), the women’s No. 1-ranked match-racer.
Swedish Match Tour partners include Swedish Match, BMW and the Match Race Association. Swedish Match Tour Official Sponsors include Musto, Sebago, Travel Places, Trident Studio and Wedgwood.
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FOR INFORMATION ABOUT THE SWEDISH MATCH TOUR
Sean McNeill
Director of Public Relations
Phone: +1 401 846 8812
Mobile: +1 401 662 1501
E-mail: smcneill@f10marketing.com
FOR INFORMATION ABOUT THE SWEDISH MATCH CUP
Joakim Hermansson
Press Officer
Mobile: +46 70 604 25 04
E-mail: joakim.hermansson@gkss.se
SWEDISH MATCH TOUR STANDINGS
(After 7 of 8 stages)
1. Ed Baird (USA) 102 points
T. Peter Gilmour (AUS) 102 points
3. Russell Coutts (NZL) 70 points
4. Jes Gram-Hansen (DEN) 45 points
5. Philippe Presti (FRA) 44 points
6. Staffan Lindberg (FIN) 38 points
7. James Spithill (AUS) 35 points
8. Bertrand Pacé (FRA) 34 points
SWEDISH MATCH CUP ENTRANTS (as of June 28, 2005)
Ed Baird (USA) Alinghi – Tied for Swedish Match Tour Championship
Dean Barker (NZL) Emirates Team New Zealand – Two-time Swedish Match Cup champion (2000, ’02)
Johnie Berntsson (SWE) – Local qualifier
Russell Coutts (NZL) Coutts Racing – Placed 3rd on Swedish Match Tour Leaderboard
Peter Gilmour (AUS) Pizza-La Sailing Team – Tied for Swedish Match Tour Championship
Björn Hansen (SWE) – Tied 10th at Swedish Match Cup 2004
Kelvin Harrap (NZL) Emirates Team New Zealand – Placed 9th on Swedish Match Tour Leaderboard
Magnus Holmberg (SWE) Victory Challenge – Past Swedish Match Tour champion (2001)
Peter Holmberg (ISV) Alinghi – Past Swedish Match Tour champion (2002)
Staffan Lindberg (FIN) – Placed 6th on Swedish Match Tour Leaderboard
Lars Nordbjerg (DEN) – Nordic Match-Racing Champion
Bertrand Pacé (FRA) BMW Oracle Racing – Placed 8th on Swedish Match Tour Leaderboard
Iain Percy (GBR) +39 Challenge – Competing in second Swedish Match Tour event
Philippe Presti (FRA) Luna Rossa – Placed 5th on Swedish Match Tour Leaderboard
Jesper Radich (DEN) Desafio Espanol – Past Swedish Match Tour Champion (2003)
Ian Williams (GBR) – Competing in second Swedish Match Tour event
ABOUT THE SWEDISH MATCH TOUR
• The Swedish Match Tour is the leading professional sailing series in the world.
• The Tour offers $1 million in overall prize money, with $200,000 divided among the top eight teams in the overall Tour Championship points race.
• The Tour champion wins a BMW 545i Touring, a $60,000 bonus and the official Swedish Match Tour Championship Trophy, produced by Swedish Match Tour sponsor Wedgwood.
• Swedish Match Tour events take place in venues with virtual on-the-water stadiums, which allow general public spectators to follow the races shoreside.
• Swedish Match Tour television programs and highlights reach nearly 500 million households in 190 countries around the world.
• Swedish Match Tour partners include Swedish Match, BMW and the Match Race Association. Swedish Match Tour Official Sponsors include Musto, Sebago, Travel Places, Trident Studio and Wedgwood.
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Newsletter - September 2008
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