Posted by Bruno Troublé, former AC helmsman for Baron Bich and organizer of the Louis Vuitton Cup, hosted the press conferences during the 36th America’s Cup, and remains an enthusiastic fan of the event. Here’s an excerpt of an interview with Tip & Shaft…
How was the atmosphere in Auckland?
It was a real party, people love the America’s Cup here. There were races that saw 17,000 spectator boats on the water it was mind blowing! New Zealand has a population of 4 million there were days when the TV audience was 800,000 viewers so that is 20% of the country, that’s huge, pro rata for France that would be almost 15 million.
And this enthusiasm was also very strong in Italy … I believe there were 6 million people in front of their TV at 4am. This proves that America’s Cup, if we discount the Vendée Globe, which is more of a social phenomenon, the Cup remains by far the most famous and legendary sailing event brimful of stories of people who have dedicated their lives, their energy, their fortune, trying to earn it for 170 years…
For the rest of the story from Scuttlebutt Sailing News CLICK HERE!
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