MARINA YACHTING SARDINIA CUP HALTED BY NORTHWESTERN WINDS

Porto Cervo, 15th September 1998

A 35-knot winds and gusts of up to 40 knots forced the Race Committee of the Marina Yachting Sardinia Cup to cancel the regatta scheduled for today.

Nine different countries, represented by 11 national teams, will thus have the day off, thanks to the weather. In the running in this edition are Argentina, France (competing with two teams), Greece, Italy (represented by two teams), Malta, Germany and Holland in a joint team, Spain and England.

The offshore program will go ahead as planned tomorrow; the competing teams will, however, enter port tomorrow evening to allow the trial originally scheduled for today to take place on Thursday.

In the meantime, the Italian Sailing Federation took advantage of today's imposed vacation to coordinate the teams and strategies for next year Admiral's Cup, as it is governed by the same rules and regulations as the Sardinia Cup. This year, the Italian line-up comprises two national teams. The first is composed of Brava Q8 (Pasquale Landolfi), Breeze (Paolo Gaia) and Blue Storm (Gualberto Gualtieri); the second includes Winterthur Yah Man (Vittorio Rava), Edimetra (Ernesto Gismondi) and Malinda (Massimo Mezzaroma).

As for the other teams, a measure of restlessness was detected in the Spanish team. They await the arrival of His Royal Highness Juan Carlos, who will be at the helm of the largest competing craft, with a team formed by the sailors who will vie for the next America's Cup on behalf of Spain.

No luck in sight for the Merit Cup Pro team, competing with the colours of Malta; they have yet to test their newly launched Sydney 40 (monotype for the next Admiralís Cup).

Expectations are high in Porto Cervo for tomorrow's appointment, scheduled to begin at 11:30 a.m.

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