Luna Rossa on the corner but there is the Spithill factor

by time news

Time.news – Under 6-3, Luna Rossa has her back to the wall in this America’s Cup but she can cling to her helmsman James Spithill. The Pitbull, as the 41-year-old Australian helmsman is nicknamed, knows how to overturn a challenge against the New Zealanders: in 2013 he was on Oracle when the American boat made one of the greatest sporting comebacks of all time: from a disadvantage of 8-1 against Team New Zealand, he won eight races in a row and went for an America’s Cup by now unexpected.

The San Francisco enterprise

Taking advantage of a five-day break, Spithill worked on the boat but also on the psychology of the crew and rivals and then led a ferocious rematch. He later said that the most important thing was to collect the first victory which “revived the crew”. The great sailor from Sydney has already compared this challenge to that of eight years ago: “At the time we started the competition unprepared against the New Zealanders and all the predictions made about who would be favored in certain wind conditions were disregarded. Under 8 -1 we compacted, we were all willing to fight until the end to improve our speed in the presence of an opponent who had made a great approach. Once again we will try to the end “.

The record of regattas won

Spithill, who on Luna Rossa is joined by Checco Bruni, is the helmsman with the most races won in the America’s Cup, 16. Bullied at school for his red hair and freckles, with a right leg shorter than the left that seemed to preclude him. a sporting future, he tried in boxing and then in sailing. At nine his first boat, shared with his sister Katie. At the age of ten, the first regatta was immediately won. Then a dizzying rise in match-racing and offshore regattas until his debut in the America’s Cup in 2000: at just 19 he became the youngest helmsman in the history of the trophy. Seattle One World was among its boats.

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