Sips from the Cup: Willis to be chief umpire again for America's Cup

Compiled by JULIE ASH

Bryan Willis of Ryde, Isle of Wight, has been appointed by the International Sailing Federation as the chairman of the jury and chief umpire for the Louis Vuitton Cup and 31st America's Cup match.

The appointment was first agreed on by the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron, as Defenders of the Cup, and the Yacht Club Punta Ala (Prada challenge), as the Challenger of Record, and then endorsed by the International Sailing Federation.

Willis has been involved with the Louis Vuitton Cup and the America's Cup since 1980. Most recently he served as chairman of the jury and chief umpire in the 1999-2000 event.

For the 2002-2003 events he will lead a team of 18 international umpires who will oversee as many as 175 races over five months beginning in October.

He is a member of the sailing federation's racing rules committee and the race officials committee, and is chairman of the international jury for the round-the-world event.

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Ever wondered just how many people it takes to run an America's Cup campaign? Try anywhere between 60 and 100.

Switzerland's Alinghi have 95 people working to try to win the America's Cup. That 95 includes 31 sailors, 14 designers, 21 boat builders, seven shore crew, six support people and six marketing and communications people.

In comparison, Team New Zealand have around 85 people involved in their campaign.

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Team New Zealand has acquired another team member, but how useful he will be out on the water is another question.

Just for a laugh, Team New Zealand tied a jersey and a pair of shorts on to a pole and hoisted them up on the fence pointing right into the Alinghi compound - the home of former Team New Zealand skipper Russell Coutts.

Alinghi, who were having a media breakfast at the time, thought the latest Team New Zealand member was a bit of a chuckle, but were concerned he was a little too skinny to sail - one gust of wind and it would be a case of man overboard.

And when asked just what he was doing spying on the opposition, the dummy replied - "no comment."

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Children in Britain have the chance to win a trip Down Under in the Crew Challenge, an education project which introduces youngsters to creative research and experimentation on the water.

The Challenge was launched at the London International Boat Show by GBR Challenge.

Children take part in the Challenge in teams and have the chance to enter a national competition to win a trip to the Louis Vuitton Cup.

The project focuses on one of the most exciting and secretive areas of the cup - the boat design.

It aims to introduce children to the principles of sailing and yacht design. The project is aimed at nine to 13-year-olds who will learn about the history of the cup, discover the basic principles behind boat design, and work in teams to produce and test an America's Cup-style hull.

Entries will be scrutinised by members of the GBR Challenge design team, with the finals taking place at GBR's boat tank-testing facility in Gosport, in June.

The teams then go on to design and build their own boat hull.

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OneWorld Challenge's second America's Cup USA 67 boat is on its way to Auckland. USA 65 was shipped earlier in the month.

The boats will arrive in New Zealand for rigging and completion before they are christened, and will begin racing and testing in early spring in preparation for the Louis Vuitton Challenger Series, which begins on October 1.

The OneWorld yachts were designed by Laurie Davidson, Bruce Nelson and Phil Kaiko.

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