Wednesday, May 09, 2007

Italy's "Luna Rosa" one of four in Knockout Stage of America's Cup in Revamped Valencia

The ANNOTICO Report

 

Team New Zealand, gained top ranking, pushing US Oracle into second with Italy's "Luna Rossa" in third and Spain's Desafio Espanol came in fourth.

 

Team NZ as top ranker gets to choose their opponents for the best-of-nine semifinals beginning on Tuesday, and choose Spain's Desafio Espanol. Therefore US Oracle and Italy's "Luna Rossa" will be battling it out in their semifinal.

 

The winners of those two semi Finals will face off for the right to face defending Champion "Alinghi" from landlocked Switzerland.

 

As Champion "Alinghi" had the choice of cities to host the America's Cup and selected Valencia, Spain third largest city.

 

This is the first time in 156 years that America's Cup has  been held in Europe, and there has been a decided effort to make it less elitist,  (it was held in Newport R.I. for 50 odd years), and more spectator friendly by making the races shorter, and closer to shoreline, which has been enthusiastically responded to.

 

Valencia embarked on an aggressive urban transformation plan 20 years ago. The Crown Jewel is The City of Arts and Sciences, that include a Planetarium, an Aquarium, an Opera House, and its centerpiece the Palace of Arts alone costing $334 million. Located in the Turia Gardens a drained river converted to a park is projected to have  a 230 tall "Public Square" dwarfed by three towers ranging from 720 to 987 feet, the later 81 stories , the tallest in Europe.  There is a Calatrava Bridge, and a Major Conference Center,  and an additional  $241 million was spent renovating 64 Historic Sites. 

 

That is awesome!!!!!!      As a result, tourism has been  5 times greater than in 1991. A million people alone are expected for the Finals of the America's Cup starting June 23.

 

America's Cup, Tourism Boom hits Spain

Boston Globe

By Paul Logothetis

AssociatedPress 

April 30, 2007

VALENCIA, Spain --Forget Barcelona, Bilbao or Seville. Now it is Valencia's turn to bask in the international spotlight.

Spain's third-largest city has ascended travelers' must-visit lists since defending champion Alinghi -- the sailing team from landlocked Switzerland -- picked it to host the 32nd America's Cup. But the yachting race series is only one part of an aggressive urban transformation plan for Valencia that began 19 years ago.

"To be here over the last 20 years has been very humbling -- it's a big success because the city has totally changed," said Jose Salinas, director of Valencia Tourism since 1991. "Valencia has taken a big leap forward; it is now a more open and cosmopolitan city than it was before and the people -- locals and visitors -- are embracing it."

Tourists have responded, just as they did with Barcelona following the 1992 Olympic Games and Bilbao after the opening of the Frank Gehry-designed Guggenheim Museum in 1997.

In recent years, Valencia has experienced the biggest jump in tourism of any European city. The 1.6 million visitors who came here in 2006 were nearly five times the number who came in 1992.

Better travel connections, including the rise of low-cost European airlines, the advent of the Internet, expansion in the number of hotels, conference halls, museums and art galleries are why Valencia's tourism numbers are expected to top the 2 million visitor mark in 2007. Among Spanish cities, only Madrid and Barcelona get more tourists.

Tourist arrivals in Valencia this year will include a million people expected for the America's Cup, which begins June 23. But to many, the Palace of the Arts is what put Valencia on the map.

Designed by the superstar architect Santiago Calatrava, who happens to be a native son, the $334 million palace is part of a complex of museums and other attractions called the City of Arts and Sciences. The futuristic white buildings, most of them designed by Calatrava, include a planetarium, an aquarium and the arts palace, an opera house that looks a little like a floating gladiator helmet.

As in Bilbao, Valencia has a Calatrava-designed bridge, a renowned work by British architect Norman Foster (the Conference Center) and a mayor willing to spend to transform the city.

Valencia's City of Arts and Sciences is set within the Turia Gardens, a drained river renovated into a park in the 1990s, and Calatrava's next work will be here also, a 230-foot-tall public square to be completed in 2008. "Agora" will be dwarfed only by the neighboring "Three Towers," three skyscrapers ranging from 720 to 987 feet, with the latter 81-story building to be the tallest in Europe.

Mayor Rita Barbera has overseen the renovation of 64 historic sites in the city at a cost of $241 million during her 16-year tenure. Not since the 15th century has this mercantile city -- still known for its UNESCO-protected silk markets -- seen such a renaissance.

Barbera and Salinas were responsible for the America's Cup bid in 2003, which sped up the planned renovation of the port, a public harbor with team bases, exhibits, cafes, restaurants, concerts and giant screens broadcasting the race.

With the America's Cup returning to Europe for the first time in 156 years, the growing interest in the event coincides with a friendlier format. Organizers have shortened the races and put fans closer to the sailing than ever before, thanks to Valencia's deep shoreline. The race is trying to shed its reputation as an elitist event for the yachting crowd in places such as Newport, R.I., where it was held for 50-odd years.

"It was a win-win situation. Thanks to the America's Cup we have been able to advance the work behind certain infrastructures," Salinas said. "The exposure from this event -- an international event that will hit all across the world -- has accelerated the process and provided the city with a platform to improve its tourist image, giving Valencia a certain presence as a unique destination." 

http://www.boston.com/news/world/europe/

articles/2007/04/30/americas_cup_tourism_

boom_hits_spain?mode=PF

 

 

Big win puts Team NZ on top

 

Stuff.com NZ

Thursday, 10 May 2007

Team New Zealand sailed to an emphatic victory over Oracle Racing off Valencia today to regain top ranking going into the knockout stages of the America's Cup challengers' series.


TEAM NZ CHOOSE SPANISH FOR SEMIS

The result leapfrogged Team NZ above their American rivals on the leaderboard and gave them the right to choose their opponents for the best-of-nine semifinals beginning on Tuesday (NZ time).

The showdown between two heavyweights on the last day of the round-robin phase had been expected to be a tight affair, with Oracle going in as favourites.

But it became no contest shortly after the start, as NZL92 sought out and hooked on to a windshift.

From there, skipper Dean Barker and his crew opened out a huge gap on the way to one minute 34 second victory.

Syndicate head Grant Dalton said Team NZ had approached the encounter no differently than any other in the regatta.

"We put together a game plan that suited the conditions," he said.

"We got a good call from the weather team. Then Dean and the boys performed a perfect execution."

Dalton said his team had expected a windshift from the right on the first beat and it came in right on cue.

"We built a good lead quite quickly and from then the plan was simply to keep our boat between USA98 and the finish mark," he said.

"We didn't have an anxious moment during the entire race."

After losing three of their 10 matches in the first round-robin, Team NZ were unbeaten in the second, avenging defeats to Oracle and another of the semifinalists, Italy's Luna Rossa.

Today's contest with USA98, sailed in a 10 to 12-knot sea breeze, featured 25 New Zealanders among the 34 sailors on the two boats, including 11 on Oracle.

After a tense pre-start, in which Oracle skipper Chris Dickson threatened to luff NZL92, the two yachts hit the line side by side and with good speed.

But while Oracle stuck to the left-hand side of the course, Team NZ headed for the right.

When Barker tacked back, the lateral separation was huge with USA98 a couple of boat lengths in front, but as the wind shifted right NZL92 powered ahead.

By the top mark, the margin was 54sec and Team NZ made gains on each subsequent leg.

Not event a small rip in their spinnaker after the final gybe on the run home proved a problem.

Luna Rossa defeated fellow semifinalists Desafio Espanol by a comfortable 1min 54sec in a match that had no bearing on the standings, as the Italians already had third spot sewn up.

Luna Rossa's Australian helmsman, James Spithill, won the pre-start against Desafio's No 2, Dane Jesper Radich.

From there, the Italians chose the favoured side of the course and held the lead throughout the journey.

The Spanish didn't help their cause when they copped a penalty for draping their spinnaker over the top mark.

There were also wins for Italians Mascalzone Latino and +39 Challenge, and for South Africa's Team Shosholoza.

But victory was tinged with disappointment, as the trio are in the group of seven syndicates who will now be packing up for home.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/4054742a1823.html

 

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