Bruno
Troublé gives his vision (22/09/02) (Source
: Alinghi)
Bruno Troublé is one of the
key figures in the America’s Cup. Founder of the Louis
Vuitton Cup, helmsman of the French yachts in 1977,
1980 and 1983, he also took part in the Olympic Games
in Mexico and Montreal. Nowadays, Bruno Troublé is
better known for the style and method with which he
manages the Louis Vuitton Cup – a skilful mixture
of authoritarianism and charm.
Bernard Schopfer : Lots of people are saying that
this Louis Vuitton Cup will be the finest, the most
closely-fought etc… Is this marketing tactics or a
reality ?
Bruno Troublé : I sincerely believe that this will
indeed be a fabulous edition, as the homogeneity between
the Challengers is impressive. From a historical point
of view, the Challengers series have always been dominated
by one team. Il Moro in 1992, Team New Zealand in
1995, Prada in 2000. This time however, I think there
will be very little difference between the yachts.
BS: How does this edition differ to the earlier ones?
BT : The organisation of the Challengers Cup has always
been dominated by the weaker teams who were in the
majority. This time however, six of the nine teams
consider themselves as being « heavyweights ». They
have set up a quick knock-out system. This means that
the first boat will be eliminated after a month of
racing, leaving just four boats to go through to the
semi-finals, whereas six boats remained at that stage
in the last competition.
BS: Halsey Street, the syndicate’s road, is going
to be flooded with tears…
BT : Yes, no doubt it will. It’s a draconian system.
But you must not lose sight that the aim behind the
Louis Vuitton Cup is to find the best Challenger.
The competitors considered that this was the best
way to go about it.
BS: Do you think that the America’s Cup has great
potential for development?
BT : There is a 30growth with each successive edition.
But if the Cup was to come to Europe – which I dream
of seeing happen – the event will cross over into
a new domain.
BS: What do you mean by that?
BT : I mean that it will be a great development from
a sport and media point of view, with an increased
level of professionalism.
BS: In concrete terms ?
BT : As intended by the rules, the next Defender will
be a major force. That team will make decisions as
to where, when and on what type of boat. I hope that
the team concerned will make the right decisions and
that the next edition will be better organised.
BS: Oh, really?
BT : The rules of this year’s competition were adopted
very quickly and without forethought. As a result,
the Cup is suffering already - even before the first
race has been run - from polemical debates due to
a lack of professionalism and organisation. It is
one of this event’s underlying fundamental problems.
The crews are more professional than those organising
the race.
BS: How can this be avoided ?
BT : The Protocol needs to be revised from top to
bottom to simplify the whole event. In particular,
I believe that the nationality rule is absurd. Other
rules need to be looked at too. Here’s an example:
we’ll lose 1/3 of the racing days available through
bad weather as the rules prohibit any racing when
there’s a wind of more than 22 knots. That too is
absurd. For the public, television, partners….
BS: It is often bandied about that the Cup is the
world’s third most important sports event in terms
of media coverage. How does that translate in real
terms ?
BT : It’s true to say that the Cup is less visible
than football or Formal 1 car racing. On the other
hand, the event lasts for quite some time and the
accumulation of media coverage really does make it
the 3rd most important sports event in the world.
It is a fantastic spectacle for television. Just to
give you an idea, production costs run to 190.000
dollars a day !
BS: Do you also think that the format needs to be
changed ?
BT : I do. A more spectacular format is needed. I
would love to see 35 metres long yachts with a crew
of fifteen, racing without any restriction on wind
! The America’s Cup has to present the finest racing
yachts imaginable. It must be at the leading edge
of technology and media coverage.
