Swedes and Conner on verge of elimination

7.30pm

Hopes turned to dust today for Sweden's Victory Challenge as they first lost the lead and then their yacht's spinnaker during the America's Cup challenger series on the Hauraki Gulf.

Victory went 0-3 down in their quarterfinal repechage match-up with Italy's Prada, losing by 51 seconds in today's race, and are now just one loss away from being eliminated from the Louis Vuitton Cup.

The same fate threatens Dennis Conner's Stars and Stripes team, representing the New York Yacht Club, who also went 0-3 down in their contest with Seattle's OneWorld after losing today's match by one minute two seconds.

Without a significant reversal of form, Team Dennis Conner's hopes of making the semifinals look dependent on their efforts to have OneWorld disqualifed from the competition.

On the course, today's big drama came from Victory Challenge, whose helmsman Jesper Bank got the team away to a strong start.

Prada looked to get slightly ahead of them at times on the first leg upwind, but could never get enough of a margin to cross in front, and at the end of the leg Victory were 9sec ahead.

The intensity of the contest increased downwind as Prada trailed by less than two boat lengths.

The Swedes pulled off a slick manoeuvre, feinting a gybe and gaining a few metres before carrying out the manoeuvre for real and getting out to a lead of about 60m.

Prada came back at them and managed to slip ahead, then it was the Swedes turn to come back at the Italians.

The boats were close together, but as the windward boat it was Victory's responsibility to avoid contact.

Prada veered in their direction, the Swedes pulled away but in the process they broached, their spinnaker pole broke and the spinnaker fell down.

To add insult to injury the Swedes were penalised because their collapsing sail brushed against Prada's boat ITA-74.

Despite the huge setback the Victory crew never gave in. They stayed close to Prada throughout the race, even gaining on the second downwind leg without their spinnaker pole.

The margin of Prada's victory was exaggerated by the penalty turn Victory carried out at the finish line.

OneWorld's win over Stars and Stripes was more clear cut, with Conner's team faltering at the start and never recovering.

Apparently thinking they were about to cross too early, the Stars and Stripes crew caused their boat to dip just before it crossed the starting line, enabling OneWorld to get away to a 9sec advantage.

The Seattle team continued to pull away throughout the race.

Today's racing was delayed by nearly four hours because of a lack of wind, but by late afternoon the breeze had started strengthening from the south, reaching 18 knots during the matches.

- NZPA

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