Alinghi risk ban for flouting gulf laws

By HELEN TUNNAH

Alinghi boats could be banned from the Hauraki Gulf if their crews keep flouting laws forbidding them from entering Team New Zealand's training zones.

Police say tensions between the America's Cup rivals have led to chase boats deliberately ramming each other, and officers fear someone may be hurt.

Team Alinghi were yesterday fined $10,000 after two crew drove a support boat through the middle of Team New Zealand's exclusive training zone, minutes after being stopped by police and warned for a similar stunt.

Senior Sergeant Martin Paget told the Herald the act was "a deliberate provocation". He did not know if the Swiss were provoking Team New Zealand or the police.

But he said if Alinghi continued to break the law police would speak to appropriate organisations about whether they should be allowed to use the gulf at all.

Yesterday's fine would be reported to the Maritime Safety Authority.

Alinghi apologised for the incident, the latest in a series of stoushes between the two teams.

Alinghi include Russell Coutts and Brad Butterworth, who quit Team New Zealand during a bitter split after the last America's Cup.

The rivals race for the cup from February 15.

The tit-for-tat disputes have involved both teams' support boats and generally occur when the boats get too close to the actual America's Cup yachts as they train.

Under the law, each team have a private training area which they can use each day.

Inflatable chase boats have been used to force away nosy rivals, and Mr Paget confirmed boats had rammed each other.

"We've taken the tack that until now they've been misbehaving as badly as each other. But it got to the point where we were worried someone might get hurt.

"There's been a certain amount of conflict which has been getting a little heated. It's been low-level but potentially dangerous behaviour and we said 'This is enough, guys. This is a sport'. It's no longer acceptable."

He said tensions had increased since the end of last year.

About that time, Team New Zealand wrote to Alinghi complaining that they were persistently breaking America's Cup surveillance rules, which limit how close competitors can get to their rivals.

On Wednesday, police met both teams to issue strict guidelines on where chase boats could go, and what the consequences would be if laws were flouted.

"We told them, 'We will take a hard line because you don't seem to be able to sort it out yourselves'," Mr Paget said.

Two officers monitored the behaviour of the teams yesterday morning, and found an Alinghi chase boat going through Team New Zealand's exclusive training area.

The chase boat was stopped and the two New Zealand-born occupants spoken to. But 31 minutes later, the boat was driven through the middle of Team New Zealand's training course.

Police stopped the boat and slapped the syndicate and driver with a $10,000 instant fine, allowed under the Maritime Transport Act.

The act was amended to allow for cup racing, with teams given limited but exclusive use of parts of the gulf for training and racing.

Team Alinghi yesterday confirmed that two contract staff had "inadvertently" strayed into the restricted sailing area, but said the staff were inexperienced and had entered the zone by mistake.

"Alinghi expresses its regrets and apologises to the New Zealand police and Team New Zealand."

* Under law changes introduced for the cup, the Minister of Transport issues the regatta a permit to allow officials to nominate "exclusive use" zones for competitors.

This allows the challenger series and America's Cup racing to be sailed without interference from normal on-the-water and shipping traffic.

It also allows teams to be allocated private areas for training.

nzherald.co.nz/americascup

Racing schedule, results and standings