|
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-Pantani's
project is Toscana Challenge (11/02/03)
(source : Toscana
Challenge) |
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The Italian sports' daily
"Gazzetta dello Sport" reported last week that a new
Italian syndicate is borning and suggested that this
new team has bought one of the 2002 Stars & Stripes
and want to recruit Poland’s match racing ace Karol
Jablonski as skipper.
More details have been released concerning the Team
led by Gualtiero Pantani, an Italian businessman.
The syndicate, christened "Toscana Challenge", would
sail under the Yacht Club Livorno's burgee and would
have recruited former Stars & Stripes tactician (and
AmericaOne trimmer) Terry Hutchinson and Poland’s
Karol Jablonski, who was hoping to put together a
Polish campaign but commented on Thursday that this
project would not now come to fruition.
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-A
new Italian syndicate ? (10/22/03)
(source : La
Nazione) |
|
With the probable demise
of the Prada AC program and with the merger rumors
about Team NZ and Mascalzone, there is some dock talk
concerning a new Italian effort.
According to Italian sports' daily "Gazzetta dello
Sport", the Italian businessman Gualtiero Pantani
has bought one of the 2002 Stars & Stripes and
want to recruit Poland’s match racing ace Karol Jablonski
as skipper.
Rumors suggesting Jablonski may be re-thinking his
participation in the Polish challenge but have been
refuted by later reports.
Gualtieron Pantani, however, denies the information
published by the Italian sports' daily and says he
is just involved in a group of businessmen who are
planning to launch a new Italian bid for 2007.
The group hasn't officially announced a campaign yet.
Pantani says they're in the feasibility stage, exploring
whether it would be worthwhile to challenge.
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Team
Dennis Conner's boats purchased ? (10/10/03)
(source
: VelaItalia) |
"We have finished a long and drawn out review
of our program and we still come back to the obvious
problems which we realized early on", commented
Bill Trenkle on to the question about why Team Dennis
Conner was not in the finals. "We started our sailing
program very late".
In June 2000, the OneWorld Challenge bought USA-55 from
Stars and Stripes and, after that, the 2003 Dennis Conner's
campaign has no ACC to prepare the America's Cup regatta.
Scenario likely to be repeated as it's has been reported
that a team has purchased Dennis Conner's ACC boats,
Stars & Stripes (USA 66 and USA 77). |
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Newport
pursues dream of races' return (09/27/03)
(source
: The
Newport Daily News) |
One of the greatest facts about the last America's
Cup was "the revival of a long-standing relationship
that has existed between Dennis Conner and the New York
Yacht Club" as George M. Isdale Jr., former commodore
of the NYYC, said.
The New York Yacht Club has a long history with the
America's Cup, retained the trophy for 132 years, or
until 1983. During that period, there were 25 defenses.
After a study conducted by the state's America's Cup
Planning Committee while Stars & Stripes remained a
contender in the Cup races, the consensus emerged that
Newport could in fact accommodate the sailing world's
biggest event - with some help from the rest of the
Ocean State.
Will the Newport-based New York Yacht Club mount a challenge
for 2007? "We don't know," said Lawrence S. Huntington,
new commodore of the NYYC.
"The answer is, if a member came to us and said, 'I
really want to do this and I'm ready to fund it,' we
would very seriously contemplate such a thing." But
the emphasis is on the "I". |
| |
Recent
Team Dennis Conner news (05/15/03)
(source
: Stars
& Stripes) |
It has been a few months now since Team Dennis
Conner returned home to the states and, like the other
challengers, they are now waiting for the venue and
host city for the 32nd America's Cup.
"We are of course all on the edge of our seats
waiting to see where the 2007 America's Cup will be
sailed", long term TDC member Bill Trenkle said.
"It is particularly important to us here at TDC
because we want to compete in 2007 and will need to
raise even more sponsorship money than we had in 2003".
"We fully realize that if we want to compete in
the 2007 Cup, the venue will have to be attractive to
the sponsors and make it worth their while."
Team Dennis Conner have finished a long and drawn out
review of the program and they still come back to the
obvious problems which they realized early on. They
started the sailing program very late and they were
not in a position to start the training program in Long
Beach until February 2002, a mere 8 months before the
first race.
"We know that having the budget in place early
is good, we know that having a maximum amount of time
to train is good and we also know that pushing the design
envelope to catch up is risky", Trinkle explained.
"Will we be in a better position in the future?
We certainly hope so, but only time will tell",
he addes. "If we have enough funding we will be
there. We have the experience and expertise to do it.
If it looks like the costs will be too high and the
funding is not there, then it may be time to sit this
one out and watch from the sidelines, but lets hope
it does not come to that". |
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Team
Dennis Conner packs up basecamp (12/19/02)
(source
: Stars
& Stripes) |
The Team Dennis Conner shore team is currently
packing up both USA-66 and USA-77 along with all of
the team's workshops and offices in preparation for
vacating their America's Cup base at Halsey Street.
The Team Dennis Conner retail shop, which is located
on the base, is scheduled to stay open until the end
of the America's Cup.
"Because the venue is not established for the next Cup,
we will be storing our 'America's Cup package' in a
safe place because our lease runs out here at the base
on March 31," said Bill Trenkle, Director of Operations
for Team Dennis Conner.
The property is scheduled to become private real estate
after the 31st America's Cup concludes at the end of
March 2003, whether Team New Zealand successfully defends
or not.
Most of the 75-person team has already left New Zealand
to return to their respective homes in the United States
and only a skeleton crew remains to pack up.
"Auckland has been by far the best venue for the America's
Cup and I plan on staying until the end to see who wins
and what the future of the event will be," said four-time
Cup winner and syndicate head Dennis Conner.
"Of course I am disappointed that we won't be challenging
Team New Zealand, but this has been one of the most
exciting and challenging regattas for me and I am grateful
to the people of New Zealand for making me feel at home".
When asked if Stars & Stripes would be back, "Big
Bad Dennis" said no decision had been made.
"I will certainly be considering coming back to
do the Cup again if we feel we can raise enough funds
to mount a strong challenge, but that is a bit of a
question mark right now."
"We had a lot of talent on our team and we had two great
boats," concluded Conner. "The competition was very
strong this time, which makes it very exciting for the
sponsors, fans and the sailors, but it also makes it
a very tough event to win".
Conner, who is currently ranked the top Etchells sailor
in the world, plans to race in several upcoming Etchells
regattas both here in New Zealand and back in the United
States including the North Americans in Annapolis in
May 2003. |
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Rumors
began to fly around for 2006 (12/15/02)
(source
: IACC
City) |
Rumors began to fly around that a mysterious Italian
is about to close a deal to buy Team DC's assets and
launch a new syndicate for 2006.
Old foes Dennis Conner and the New York Yacht Club was
back together as Stars and Stripes, and only time will
tell if the unusual alliance survives.
After the last Cup, USA 55 was sold to the OneWorld
team and the best teams were quick to acquire the boats
of the defunct syndicates. |
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