The Louis Vuitton America's Cup World Series took place June 11-12, 2016 in Chicago. On Friday, June 10, the six competing crews warmed up on Lake Michigan, giving the public a show with 2 capsizings.
Saturday, June 11 was the first day of racing. Unfortunately, light and unstable winds dashed the hopes of the sailors and the public to race. However, nearly 1000 boats were present to watch the race and tens of thousands of fans were present at Navy Pier.
First Japanese victory on the first day
The race committee decided to use the Friday substitute race instead of the Saturday race. In New York, the six teams had already settled on a substitute race, but it had not been used. And so it is the Japanese team Softbank Team Japan that wins this first round of the Louis Vuitton Cup World Series Chicago.
"It's a shame we couldn't get a race underway on time today, but it's nice to have been able to turn our great performance on Friday into a win. We worked hard to improve our performanceâ?¦ Friday was a good day and we are gaining a lot of confidence "said Dean Barker, skipper of the Japanese team.
Artemis Racing takes 2nd place e place in the ranking and Groupama Team France completes the podium. Oracle Team USA, which capsized in this substitution race, finishes last.
On Saturday afternoon, as the weather conditions improved, the race committee decided to extend the race window beyond the initial 3:00 pm deadline. Eventually, a race was able to be run in the late afternoon. It served as a substitute race for the day on Sunday, in case conditions did not allow for an official race to be run.
Emirates Team New Zealand won the race, finishing ahead of ORACLE Team USA and Artemis Racing. "Today's race was a tough battle in front of a really impressive crowd. I'm glad I was able to race in front of all the fans in Chicago." said Nathan Outteridge, skipper of Artemis Racing.
Swedish victory
Sunday was perfect, with over 200,000 fans in attendance, great winds and cooler temperatures. All six teams fought hard to win the double points in each of the three races.
In the 2 e race, the first of the day on Sunday, Land Rover BAR made a very good start, taking the lead and keeping it throughout the race. On the 3rd e groupama Team France was the first to cross the start line, but they were overtaken by Artemis Racing who took the lead, despite the repeated assaults of Oracle Team USA. The Swedish team thus scored its second victory of the weekend in Chicago. The 4th e the race closing the weekend saw 5 of the 6 teams crossing the starting line at the same time. But after a series of penalties, it was Softbank Team Japan that won the race.
The day was won by Artemis Racing, which took its first Louis Vuitton America's Cup World Series victory in fresh water. Land Rover BAR takes 2nd place e while SoftBank Team Japan finished in 3rd place e place.
"To be honest, I'm a little relieved! We finally had a really good weather day and our team seized the opportunity. We didn't achieve anything worse than a 4 e place for the whole week. We told ourselves at the beginning of the week that finishing in the top 3 in each race would allow us to win. And that's what we did." said Nathan Outteridge, skipper of Artemis Racing.
"As a team, we are pleased with our 2 e place. We would have liked to take the win, but Artemis Racing sailed very well today." said Ben Ainslie, skipper of Land Rover BAR.
Emirates Team New Zealand maintains its position at the top of the Louis Vuitton America's Cup World Series leaderboard ahead of Land Rover BAR and ORACLE Team USA.
"It was a sensational race today and to leave with our lead intact is fantastic." said Kiwi team skipper Glenn Ashby.
The next leg of the Louis Vuitton America's Cup World Series will return to England, in Portsmouth, from July 23 to 24, 2016.
