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See who works at Yachting New Zealand, as well as who is on the board and on each committee.

Management and administration

Participation and development, olympic, high performance and talent development.

The board are responsible for the governance of Yachting New Zealand, including the development of policy and strategy. The board are guided by Yachting New Zealand’s constitution, which can be viewed on the Yachting New Zealand documents webpage. 

Objectives of the board: The board members are volunteer trustees representing the interests of Yachting New Zealand’s stakeholders and are entrusted to ensure Yachting New Zealand is soundly managed.

The role of the board is one of governance rather than management. Governance focuses on Yachting New Zealand’s wider issues of organisational purpose, including the setting and monitoring of strategic direction and the establishment and monitoring of board-level policies. You can find more information about the individual Board members here.

• Greg Knowles (chair)
• Murray Brown (vice-chair)
• Sarah Bacon
• Nik Burfoot
• John Butcher
• Jenna Hansen
• Nicola Harrison
• Arabella Vennell
• Bridget Winstone-Kight

Olympic and High Performance committee

• John Clinton (chair)
• Jenny Armstrong
• Andy Maloney
• Ashton Welsh
• Leslie Egnot
• Dave Mackay

Race officials committee

• John Parrish (chair)
• Ian Clouston 
• Aaron Duncan
• Russell Green 
• Megan Kensington
• John Rountree
• Jamie Sutherland

Committee for sailors with a disability

• Dave Allerton (chair)
• John Andrews
• Tim Dempsey
• Helena Horswell
• Chris Sharp

Cruising, inshore and offshore racing committee

• Peter Henderson
• Logan Fraser
• Simon Manning
• Mark Mulcare

Audit and Risk Committee

• Nik Burfoot (chair)
• Murray Brown
• John Butcher 
• Greg Knowles

Governance and Remuneration Committee

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Peter Montgomery

Legendary yachting commentator..

New Zealand’s internationally recognised sports commentator and voice of yachting and the America’s Cup

Peter Montgomery is of that rare breed – a broadcaster who is better known than most of the sportsmen and women whose deeds he describes. Perhaps best known now for those infamous words “The America’s Cup is now New Zealand’s Cup” Peter has the uncanny knack and style of bringing an event that is happening on the other side of the world into your living room! He is stirred by the elements, by the intensity of the competition and he conveys that excitement to his listeners and viewers.

As the voice of New Zealand yachting for over 30 years Peter has covered all the major events including 9 America’s Cups, 7 Olympic Games and all 8 Whitbread/Volvo races. Peter is recognized as an authority on the sport. His skill and commitment have been recognized across the world and he regularly commentates in other countries. As New Zealand yachting has sailed the waves of unprecedented popularity in recent years it has been the distinctive voice and style of Peter that has done more to increase the public perception of yachting in New Zealand than any other individual. When Hollywood first went sailing in a feature length movie, it was Peter Montgomery who was invited to play the commentator in “Wind”. He is also involved in rugby commentating and can be found on the sidelines commenting and interviewing players at all the major rugby fixtures. Peter’s abilities are not just restricted to yachting commentating – he is a successful sports broadcaster who hosts the No 1 rating show ‘SportsWorld’ every Sunday morning on Newstalk ZB and Radio Sport, and he has been a longtime member of the radio Rugby Team in Auckland as the sideline eye.

Peter has been honoured with many awards, including:·

Sports Journalist of the Year· Sports Broadcaster of the Year· Communicator of the Year· Yachtsman of the Year – 1990, when the New Zealand Yachting Federation awarded their highest honour – The Bernard Ferguson trophy.· MBE in the Queens Birthday Honours 1995· The prestigious SPARC ‘Lifetime Contribution to Journalism through Sport’ at the New Zealand Sports Journalists Association awards 2003

Peter is also a trustee of the New Zealand International Yachting Trust and is:·

Member of the selection committee of the America’s Cup Hall of Fame· Member of the selection committee Yachting New Zealand Sailor of the Year Awards· Vice Patron – Ponsonby Cruising Club· Vice Patron - Torbay Sailing Club· Vice Patron – Blind Sailing New Zealand

For an inside comment on yachting, The America’s Cup or sport in general, Peter Montgomery is a must! New Zealand Sailing and Peter Montgomery – one without the other does not sound right. His humorous After Dinner presentations offer a ‘behind the scenes’ look at New Zealand competitive yachting while his observations in strategic planning when conditions are uncertain creates a highly relevant message to all businesses facing the uncharted waters of the nineties.

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“Peter is an accomplished speaker able to hold everyone’s attention”.“Peter incorporated our theme beautifully. The audience was captivated”. “Peter gave a very enthusiastic presentation. He had a great response from the audience”.“Peter was very pleasant to deal with, his topic was interesting and the audience enjoyed hearing about what he had to say” Harcourts Group Ltd

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Upstarts in plastic boats

Until the Australians took the Cup to Perth in 1983, anyone brave enough to suggest that little New Zealand could match the United States in a sporting event dominated by technology and cash would have been a laughing stock.

With backing from merchant bankers Michael Fay and David Richwhite, the New Zealand Challenge made its debut in the 1987 America’s Cup sailed in Fremantle, Western Australia. The team built fibreglass 12-metre yachts, rather than using aluminium. This upstart challenge rattled the opposition and America’s Cup veteran Dennis Conner, who had lost to Australia at Newport in 1983, accused Team New Zealand of cheating.

Against the odds the ‘Plastic Fantastic’ KZ7 romped through the challenger rounds, winning 37 of 38 matches. The Kiwi charge was stopped (by Dennis Conner sailing for the San Diego Yacht Club) in the finals of the Louis Vuitton Cup.  The next chapter in the America’s Cup was one of those that adds to the intrigue that surrounds the Auld Mug. And this time New Zealand was centre stage.

The big boat challenge

Not content to wait the usual three or four year Cup cycle, Sir Michael Fay,exploiting a loophole in the century old Deed of Gift, demanded an immediate challenge in 1988. New Zealand issued a challenge to the San Diego Yacht Club, abandoning the established 12-metre class and returning to the 90ft waterline measurement stipulated in the Deed of Gift.

The challenging yacht was KZ1, a massive carbon-fibre monohull with wings extending from the deck like an aircraft carrier. Even in light winds, the 30 man crew had to sit out on the wings to keep the boat upright.

For the first time in the Cup’s history therewere two different styles of boat racing each other: the Kiwis in a giant 90-foot waterline boat against Conner’s Stars & Stripesa much smaller but faster hard-winged catamaran.Predictably, the cat won on the water and a protracted court battle followed. Ultimately New Zealand lost but once again the team had reshaped the event.

The 12-metres would never again sail Cup races and the America’s Cup Class yachts were born.

A skiff on steroids

By 1992 New Zealand was recognised as a force to be reckoned with in America’s Cup racing. This edition marked the birth of the new America’s Cup Class yachts.  The new rule was restrictive but allowed the designers enough leeway in decisions to make an impact on performance.

New Zealand built a short, wide and light Bruce Farr design, sporting an unusual double strut keel and no rudder. The distinctive NZL20 was dubbed a ‘skiff on steroids’. Skippered by Rod Davis, New Zealand rocketed through to the Louis Vuitton Challenger finals. But controversy erupted again when their Italian rivals, Il Moro di Venezia, mounted a campaign against NZL20’s bowsprit.

Then leading the series 4–1, New Zealand (the team and the nation) watched in disbelief as the Italians came from behind to win by 5–4 and won the right to challenge for the America’s Cup.

Fay and Richwhite decided not to back further Cup challenges so Peter Blake, feeling that tiny New Zealand could indeed beat the mighty Americans, took up the banner.

How to win the America's cup

Peter Blake changed the team’s name to the simple Team New Zealand. The silver fern became an element of the logo, and then a masterstroke that everyone from the home of the All Blacks could relate to – the boats were black. The team concentrated on producing superbly designed and meticulously detailed yachts.

Skipper Russell Coutts built a superb sailing team and the ever-present Peter Blake kept the campaign on course and concentrated on securing the sponsorship to make it all possible. Team New Zealand’s 1995 campaign has been widely described as a textbook study of how to go about winning sport’s oldest and most elusive trophy.

New Zealanders sat glued to their television sets as Team New Zealand swept all before them in San Diego. With Sir Peter Blake and his now infamous ‘lucky red socks’ onboard, Black Magic NZL32 rocketed to ultimate glory.

Team New Zealand won the Louis Vuitton series convincingly and continued on to America’s Cup victory with a 5–0 drubbing of Team Dennis Conner’s Stars & Stripes. As the Kiwis crossed the finish line in San Diego, television commentator Peter Montgomery delivered the memorable line "America's Cup is now New Zealand's Cup!"

The magnificent defence

Back in Auckland, Peter Blake and his team set about creating a venue like no other to stage the 2000 America’s Cup. Blake got financial backing from the Government and the Auckland City Council to redevelop the Viaduct Basin and his vision transformed a run-down base for a few fishing boats into a Cup village.

In the eight years the America’s Cup was in residence at the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron, a thriving boat building and services industry grew in New Zealand worth more than a billion dollars. A small country at the edge of the south- west Pacific Ocean became the holiday destination for millions.

Meanwhile the team began preparing its defence with Tom Schnackenberg heading design and Russell Coutts leading the sailing team. Eleven syndicates from seven countries turned up in Auckland.

After a bruising Louis Vuitton challenger series, the Italian team Luna Rossa won the right to challenge for the Cup. In a repeat of the 1995 result, Team New Zealand’s black machine NZL60 eliminated the Italian challenge by 5–0. Peter Blake, Russell Coutts and a young Dean Barker were national heroes.

Disastrous defeat then the rebuild

Following the successful defence in 2000, Sir Peter Blake and his management team stepped aside. Within months Team New Zealand was beginning to fall apart. Russell Coutts and Brad Butterworth left, taking key members of Team New Zealand with them, to join a new team that had to be built from the ground up for Swiss bio-tech entrepreneur Ernesto Bertarelli.

Eventually Tom Schnackenberg and the new directors were able to secure seed money to allow the team to begin rebuilding but by then more than 30 crew members had been bought, mainly by Alinghi and One World.

The black boats were back on the Hauraki Gulf by the summer of 2000–2001, beginning the extensive training and testing critical to Cup success. However, as the Kiwi journalist Ivor Wilkins said, “there was a pack of 9 hungry challengers, many of them supported by the richest men in the world and armed with transplanted Kiwi talents and ingenuity.”

It was not to be. Team New Zealand lost the Cup to its former teammates at Alinghi, paving the way for the new era of Grant Dalton.

One-second delta ends a thriller

The team set about rebuilding and revitalising the challenge from the ground up for the 2007 America’s Cup. As a landlocked country with no access to the sea, the Swiss had to look for a coastal town and eventually the 32ndedition took place in Valencia, Spain.  A series of pre-regattas to drum up interest in the eventwere held at various venues in the two years prior and were raced sailing the previous generation of IACC (International America’s Cup Class) monohulls.

Renamed Emirates Team New Zealand, the new-look team emerged victorious in the pre-regattas and won the Louis Vuitton Cup gaining the right to face off against Alinghi for the America’s Cup Match.

New Zealanders, eager to support their team, flooded into Valencia. With New Zealand flags draped across their shoulders, they lined the canal as the yachts made their way from the harbour to the race course.

The racing that followed has been described as the most thrilling ever; no one will forget Alinghi’s winning margin of just one second in the last race.

Into the total unknown

The 34th America’s Cup marked a turning point in the history of the event. 72ft catamarans with massive wing sails squared off. Emirates Team New Zealand had to become masters of multihulls. The Kiwis, always pushing the boundaries of innovation, were the first team to bring foiling to the America’s Cup enabling the AC72 to get up and out of the water on foils and soon all the teams were flying above the water at speeds over 40 knots.

Some spectacular sailing was seen on San Francisco Bay, with Emirates Team New Zealand leading the charge through the challenger elimination series. Eventually Emirates Team New Zealand and Oracle Team USA met at the start line. Another chapter in the 162-year history was about to be written.

The Kiwis started the America’s Cup match clearly superior, but Oracle was catching up fast in a boat designed to perform better in the reduced upper wind limit of 23 knots, mandated after the tragic Artemis capsize in training. Oracle won the best of 17 regatta 9-8. An event never to be forgotten.

The redemption

After the brutal defeat in San Francisco, Emirates Team New Zealand quietly rebuilt a refreshed young and hungry team skippered by Glenn Ashby and helmed by Olympic Gold Medalist Peter Burling. Developing the campaign in their home base, the Kiwis continued to innovate and push the boundaries in secrecy andsurprised the sailing and America’s Cup world by launching a revolutionary boat with ‘cyclors’ powering their AC50 catamaran.

The boat concept was so far advanced there was no time to be replicated this time, despite futile attempts by Oracle Team USA. Emirates Team New Zealand won all of the double round robin races except the two races against the Defender, providing the American team with a false sense of hope. Oracle Team USA were racing in the Challenger Selection Series for the first time in history.

Coming back from a near catastrophic capsize the Kiwis beat Land Rover BAR in the semi finals and then the Swedish team Artemis Racing in the Louis Vuitton Cup Final, providing the ticket for a heavy weight rematch against Oracle Team USA, who went into the match with a 1 point lead.

Emirates Team New Zealand’s push for redemption was swift, a dominant display blew Oracle Team USA away 7-1 and the Kiwis won the America’s Cup for the third time.

The future is now

The 36th America's Cup will take place in Auckland from the 6th to the 21st of March 2021. An exciting new class of boat, the AC75, a foiling monohull, the likes of which had never been seen before, was announced.  

Well-loved Kiwi commentators add familiar flavour to America’s Cup coverage

As Emirates Team New Zealand battles to bring back the Cup, the familiar faces and voices of Kiwi yachting commentators Martin Tasker and Peter Lester are providing special behind the scenes coverage on Vodafone’s Facebook page.

In the past week the commentary legends’ posts have been watched close to half a million times, with thousands tuning in to catch up on the thrills, spills and highlights from each Emirates Team New Zealand race.

Vodafone’s Consumer Director Matt Williams said, “This partnership is all about helping New Zealanders get a kiwi perspective of the America’s Cup action unfolding on the other side of the world. As soon as you wake up, race highlights are right there on your phone ready to watch,” Matt said.

Emirates Team New Zealand CEO, Grant Dalton said the Vodafone partnership on Facebook is adding a touch of Kiwi magic for supporters back home.

“Yachting has such a proud history in New Zealand and a big part of the experience is hearing the voices of our own Kiwi commentators who are so passionate about the Team and have such a deep understanding what it takes to be in those boats, battling it out for the win,” Grant Dalton said.

Each day Emirates Team New Zealand races in Bermuda, Tasker and Lester share a full race day highlights package via Vodafone’s Facebook page – including exclusive dockside interviews with Emirates Team New Zealand crew before and after each race.

And for Vodafone customers lucky enough to be on the ground in Bermuda, Vodafone recently added 16 Caribbean destinations - including Bermuda - to the list of $5 daily roaming destinations. For more information visit https://www.vodafone.co.nz/daily-roaming/

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Commentator on America's Cup moving

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The next Americas Cup is going to be held in Barcelona in 2024.

Emirates Team New Zealand and the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron made the annnouncement overnight.

Barcelona's mayor Pere Aragonas says his city is welcoming the decision.

Team New Zealand boss Grant Dalton says Barcelona hosting the next America's Cup is not a betrayal to the country.

Veteran yachting commentator and three-time America's Cup competitor Peter Lester spoke to Corin Dann.

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John McBeth

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The son of a Timaru grocer, John McBeth joined Radio New Zealand's programming department at its Timaru station Radio Caroline straight from school in 1967.

He was a passionate sports fan playing senior rugby as a winger and a utility back. His enthusiasm wasn't necessarily matched by his physique, and injuries became a regular occurrence. During one enforced lay off in 1970, he offered a sports service to Radio Caroline's Saturday music show. Broadcasting soon replaced playing on a permanent basis.

After moving around RNZ's provincial stations, McBeth joined 4ZB in Dunedin in 1973. He was still working in music programming, with sports reporting as an active side line. When Iain Gallaway, one of the masters of Otago and New Zealand sports broadcasting, retired in 1977, McBeth took his place as Carisbrook's resident rugby commentator. In February 1983 he was appointed to a newly created position as RNZ's chief sports reporter in Wellington. The role was part of a move by the broadcaster to put more emphasis on sports journalism.

McBeth became RNZ's main rugby commentator in 1985 and went on to call the 1987 and 1991 World Cups. His exclamation of "Whoop-dee-do" after John Kirwan scored a runaway try in the All Blacks' opening game in 1987, led to accusations he wasn't approaching the role with the Winston McCarthy-like gravitas some seemed to expect.

McBeth defended his right to maintain a sense of humour, but took his job very seriously, and won a number of awards for his radio reports along the way. He confessed to suffering from terrible recall and struggling to remember scores once games had finished ("it doesn't interest me, old scores and that sort of thing"). But his pre-match preparation was exhaustive and he told the Dominion  Sunday  Times , “broadcasters and good journalists prepare for a game just as fully and as hard over the final 24 hours as any All Black does. It’s not all fun and sitting in bars. Damn it.”   

In 1991 he made his first appearance on television, presenting the  Boots’n’All  rugby chat show. This initial foray was followed a year later by his appointment as Television New Zealand’s lead rugby commentator, replacing  Keith Quinn  who had held the position for 17 years. The move was signalled as part of “an overall quality drive to update the presentation of rugby” on TVNZ. Quinn’s approach was apparently no longer “fashionable” at a time when coverage of Australian rugby league was proving highly successful. 

McBeth’s radio work had allowed him to retain a degree of public anonymity, but he recognised this would now change. He told the  NZ Herald  that his highly visible new role would require "a square jaw, a thick skin and broad shoulders". 

His tenure as lead commentator lasted until 1994 when TVNZ returned Quinn to the position and McBeth assumed the role of fronting rugby coverage and side-line commentary. The two were firm friends and their friendship was not affected by these changes in fortune. In fact, McBeth offered invaluable support when Quinn suffered a major health setback in 1996, before returning to commentating the following year.

An evolving media landscape was bringing further changes in fortune in this period. TVNZ had traditionally been New Zealand rugby’s TV broadcaster but now those rights went to Sky. TVNZ remained the free-to-air partner, with McBeth, Quinn and colleagues commentating on a limited number of games to pictures originating from Sky. In a further shake-up, TV3 became the free-to-air partner after the 2003 World Cup, ending TVNZ and McBeth’s involvement in rugby coverage.

He now worked across a variety of other sports, and continued to play a prominent role at the Olympic and Commonwealth Games (he even cameoed during the Olympic scenes of movie Via Satellite ). McBeth also found himself coming to grips with America’s Cup yachting over four Team New Zealand campaigns for the Auld Mug, including being frontman for TVNZ during New Zealand’s historic 1995 victory. He confessed to Third Age NZ that “when I started, I knew that the pointy end of a yacht was the bow and the big thing sticking up in the middle was the mast and it had sails on it”.

With TVNZ’s sports broadcast rights dwindling, McBeth was made redundant in 2007 (along with Keith Quinn and  Geoff Bryan ) in a major restructuring. He took the news philosophically and began working as a freelance commentator.

On top of rugby, yachting and Olympic and Commonwealth Games track and field and swimming, John McBeth has commentated at two Winter Olympic Games, two Asian Games, two world bowls championships and a variety of other sports events. In 2010 and 2013 he was employed by the Oracle America’s Cup syndicate to assess and train television commentators.

On Keith Quinn’s website, he claimed that his proudest achievement in broadcasting was “never swearing in a commentary — or was it convincing a massive TV audience that I knew something about yachting during hundreds of hours of America’s Cup coverage?”

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Yachting: Nominations saga buried as Olympic team named

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1.00pm Five yachting crews were today selected for the New Zealand Olympic team, but more could be added after regattas in Europe this month. Boardsailing veteran Barbara Kendall heads the list confirmed for Athens, where the former world champion will be taking part in her fourth Olympics. With a gold, a silver and a bronze medal from successive Games, beginning in Barcelona in 1992, the Aucklander will be New Zealand sailing's top medal hope in Greece. Others named today are Europe sailor Sarah Macky, former world Laser No 1 Hamish Pepper, up-and-coming boardsailor Thomas Ashley and the men's 470 pairing of Andrew Brown and Jamie Hunt. All five crews had been nominated by Yachting New Zealand. Today's team naming caps a controversial year for YNZ after the Sports Disputes Tribunal upheld two of three appeals against YNZ's nominations to the New Zealand Olympic Committee in March. YNZ then appealed against the tribunal's decision in the Court of Arbitration for Sport who eventually overruled the tribunal's original decision allowing YNZ's nominations in the Laser and 470 men's class to stand. If the number of crews stays as it is, it will be the smallest New Zealand sailing contingent selected for an Olympics since the boycott-hit Moscow Games in 1980. But Yachting NZ chief executive Simon Wickham said he expected further names to be added after Finn, women's 470 and Yngling events in Europe over the next fortnight. "If it stays in its current state it will be one of the smallest," Wickham said of team size. "But I doubt very much if it will end up like that. I would expect that after these regattas, we would be adding people." One strong possibility is in the Finn event, in which New Zealand has qualified for Athens and has a strong tradition, with Russell Coutts winning gold in 1984, John Cutler bronze in 1988 and Craig Monk bronze four years later. The final selection trial for the single-handed men's dinghy class will be the European championships in France starting this weekend, with the contenders being Dean Barker, Peter Fox and Clifton Webb. America's Cup skipper Barker, 12th in the world championships last year, finished the best of the trio at the Hyeres world ranking regatta in France last week with a placing of 14th overall. In the women's 470, Melinda Henshaw and Jan Shearer have the inside running over main rivals Shelley Hesson and Linda Dickson, having won the national trials in January. But they have to demonstrate, through their performance at the world championships beginning in Croatia this week, that they have the potential to finish in the top 10 at Athens. "They are doing reasonably well and improving as they go, but they haven't finished in the top-10 in one of the major regattas yet," Wickham said. "Although that is not necessarily a requirement, it strengthens their case when they are considered by the selectors." New Zealand has not yet qualified for Athens in the Yngling women's keelboat class, with the final qualifying regatta being the world championships in Spain. Meanwhile, New Zealand has been confirmed as missing out on qualifying for the Star class, after the crew of Rohan Lord and Andrew Taylor were initially thought to have done enough last week. However, after redress was given to another country at the world championships in Italy, New Zealand's Olympic berth was reallocated. Wickham was reluctant to be drawn into talking about medals in a sport in which New Zealand has done well in over recent Olympics, but believed a number of crews were within "striking distance". He rated Kendall as the strongest prospect, while Sydney Olympian Macky had pressed her case with consistent top-10 results this year. "Hamish, you can never write off and he's proving he can finish in the top-10 in major regattas," he said "In Tom, you've got an unknown quantity, being a young guy who has risen quickly through the ranks and shown top-three form in key regattas." At Hyeres, Ashley finished runner-up, while Pepper, a 1996 Olympian who returned to dinghy sailing after Team New Zealand's unsuccessful America's Cup defence last year, was eighth. Yachting team:- Men's 470 - Andrew Brown/Jamie Hunt Women's mistral - Barbara Kendall Men's mistral - Thomas Ashley Laser - Hamish Pepper Europe - Sarah Macky - NZPA

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Team New Zealand christen new America's Cup boat

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The AC75 was gifted the name Taihoro by Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei at a ceremony in Auckland on Thursday.

Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei Trust chairperson Marama Royal said the meaning behind the name was inspired from Taihoro-Nukurangi, and translates to "to move swiftly as the sea between both sky and earth".

"Taihoro-Nukurangi captures the dynamic essence of the sea (Tai), the concept of speed (Horo), the earth's movement (Nuku), and the expanse of the sky (Rangi)."

Taihoro symbolised the boat's evolutionary journey. It represented a transcendence of traditional boundaries, creating a connection between the sea and sky, she said.

The boat was christened by former New Zealand prime minister and Team New Zealand patron Helen Clark.

Team New Zealand's head of construction Geoff Senior had overseen the build of the boat which started over 10 months ago in the purpose-built Team New Zealand boat-building yard, with 45 boat-builders working throughout, totalling more than 85,000 hours to complete.

"This has been a hugely technical boat build for the construction team," Senior said.

"The design team have certainly pushed the envelope with the design of Taihoro which has tested our build team the whole way through. But we are so lucky to have such experience in our boat building team who are some of the best in the business.

"This is probably the 14th Emirates Team New Zealand boat that some of them have built. In saying this, at the other end of the spectrum, we are really proud to have also had 10 boat-building apprentices in the ranks that have been training throughout the build also."

Taihoro was transported weeks ago to the Team New Zealand base under the cover of darkness and has since been subject to a comprehensive fit out by the technical hydraulic, mechatronic, electronic and shore crew teams custom fitting the thousands of components and systems ready to hand over to the sailing team to begin its commissioning and sea trials which have been undertaken on Auckland harbour over the past week.

Team New Zealand chief executive officer Grant Dalton said at the ceremony it was a proud occasion for everyone in the team.

"So much of what the team does has to be kept secret from friends and family for obvious reasons and the work involves a huge amount of dedication, commitment, and time. So, it is always special to share the result of that effort with them at our home base naming and presenting Taihoro in partnership with Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei who again have given our boat a really special and meaningful identity.

"This is the boat which we will take to Barcelona to defend the Americas' Cup for New Zealand later this year and the name Taihoro helps us to carry our identity to Barcelona and to share our country's innovation and culture on the world stage."

Skipper Peter Burling has been at the helm as Taihoro has been commissioned over the past week having been rolled out of the shed on Friday.

"This is a really exciting time, as the different America's Cup teams have been rolling out of their sheds. Obviously there is a lot of interest in what each other's boats look like, but our 100 percent focus is on Taihoro and working through our ongoing development programme getting it up to speed.

"We don't have long sailing in Auckland before we start shipping up to Barcelona, so it is an intense but exciting time for the team."

The countdown was well and truly on to the start of racing in Barcelona on August 22.

Team New Zealand's boat for the last campaign in Auckland, Te Rehutahi , signed off in October last year. The winning boat was used as a development tool for the 37th America's Cup testing programme.

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Emirates Team New Zealand win World Series in first clues for 36th America’s Cup

• December 19, 2020

Emirates Team New Zealand win the America’s Cup World Series, which concluded in Auckland this morning

Can the Kiwis be beaten for the 36th America’s Cup? They must be on short odds already, three months out from the main event, given the dominant performance of Emirates Team New Zealand to win the Auckland America’s Cup World Series, which concluded this morning.

After 12 races, it came down to a final race decider between Challenger of Record Luna and the home Defenders for the PRADA America’s Cup World Series Auckland trophy. With Emirates Team New Zealand and American Magic on even points, a win against Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli would give the Kiwis the point that they needed to take the trophy.

Going into this morning, both the New York Yacht Club’s American Magic and Emirates Team New Zealand had taken three wins apiece over the previous two days racing, with Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli winning two of four, and INEOS Team UK trailing with four losses.

The opening race was yet another straight defeat for INEOS Team UK, who were left trailing by Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli and finished almost two legs behind. It’s been clear since the start of the America’s Cup World Series that INEOS Team UK are struggling for boat speed in light airs as well as foil control, and the British boat lost valuable ground by coming off the foils at several points during the race.

Today’s second contest was between Emirates Team New Zealand and American Magic. The dark blue American boat has looked to be the closest to Emirates Team New Zealand’s speed over the range of conditions we’ve seen so far, and rather than engage in a close pre-start duel this race started with a speed-off-the-line contest. Emirates Team New Zealand were at the pin end while American Magic were at the committee boat end, both boats at speed and on starboard.

36th America’s Cup presented by Prada, Race Day 3: Emirates Team New Zealand v New York Yacht Club American Magic

When the pair came back together, after the Kiwis had tacked onto port, the Americans used the starboard tactical advantage to tack in front of Emirates Team New Zealand. Advantage American Magic. Eventually the Kiwis tacked away, unable and unwilling to live in the dirty air of the Americans, who were able to continue to work the right-hand side of the course handing them a slight further advantage, but the margin was still slim.

Meanwhile, Emirates Team New Zealand showed they are not invincible: mishandling a tack momentarily and splashing down off the foils, which helped to hand American Magic a few more metres. By the top gate on the first lap, American Magic led Emirates Team New Zealand by 12 seconds. But by the bottom mark Emirates Team New Zealand had hauled American Magic in to trail by just 3 seconds as they went through the leeward gate.

The big race changing moment came at the top of the second beat when the Americans came off their foils through a tack and parked up just short of the windward gate. The mistake proved costly, handing the lead to the Kiwis who rounded the windward mark 54 seconds ahead. The black boat held on to win by 1min 19 seconds.

In the day’s penultimate race, American Magic beat INEOS TEAM UK by a considerable margin of 5min 48 seconds. Although both teams picked up penalties – INEOS for being early into the start box, American Magic for slipping over the boundary, the delta between the two only expanded as the wind dropped, signing off what will be a very concerning ACWS for Ben Ainslie and the British crew.

36th America’s Cup presented by Prada, Race Day 3: New York Yacht Club American Magic v Ineos Team UK

This left the final race as the decider – if the Kiwis beat the Italians they would win the first contest for the AC75s overall. One of the surprises of this World Series has been how much pre-start engagement we have already seen from the skippers in this experimental new class , and plenty of that has already featured Luna Rossa. “Jimmy Spithill has always, always, got his elbows out,” commentator and Olympian Shirley Robertson observed on the first day. This race was no exception: Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli showing their intent with a perfect port tack shortly after forcing Emirates Team New Zealand into the unfavoured corner of the start zone, nicknamed ‘coffin corner’ by the sailors. New Zealand’s Peter Burling could only follow the Italians over the line, who were already over 200m ahead.

By the first gate, Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli were ahead by 32seconds, and when Emirates Team New Zealand pinched around the top mark only to come off their foils in the process that margin grew to 800m. But when Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli splashed down as well, the race became a match to see who could take-off and get back to full pace soonest.

Emirates Team New Zealand took flight first, doubling their speed over Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli, 24 to 12 knots respectively. But the news for the Italians was about to get even worse as the Kiwis stayed with their breeze to sail at 29 knots, while Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli struggled to break 15. This has been a repeating pattern over the World Series – the New Zealand team is not immune to mistakes, but they have consistently seemed able to recover, and get back up to full foiling pace, faster than their competitors.

36th America’s Cup presented by Prada, Race Day 3: Emirates Team New Zealand v Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli Team

The rest of the race was not flawless – again the Kiwis came off their foils during a slow tack, and around the last gate had just an 18 seconds lead. The pair split across the course, searching for uninterrupted speed rather than tactical gains, but when they came back together at the finish it was the Kiwis that had held their lead to finish 16 seconds ahead of the Italians and in doing so, Emirates Team New Zealand win the Prada America’s Cup World Series.

Emirates Team New Zealand’s foil controller Blair Tuke summed up after racing: “It was tough coming off the foils, so we were happy to get back up again, but a bit more happy when they came off foils! The wind got down to 6 knots at one point, so it was an awesome effort to get going by the lads and keep it going for the rest of the race – so all good.

PRADA ACWS Auckland 202, Peter Burling holds the trophy as Emirates Team New Zealand wins the America’s Cup World Series

“It has been an epic day’s racing, American Magic and Luna Rossa are certainly going really well in these conditions – great to secure the win in front of a fantastic crowd out there.

“This is great for the team in general but there is plenty more work to do.”

Racing continues with the single day ‘Christmas Race’ knockout series tomorrow, find out how you can watch here .

Skippers quotes:

Peter Burling, Helmsman – Emirates Team New Zealand:

“Today was at the bottom end of the wind range we agreed to sail on. We could really notice big gains and losses, which made it a tricky race. We had a pretty good race with Luna Rossa, even if we were seeing some pretty light numbers, so it made for a pretty tricky end of the race.

“We really enjoyed the challenge. We were blown away by how many kiwis showed up to see us here and seeing how many boats were around the racetrack.

Jimmy Spithill, Helmsman – Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli Team

“Today was a little bit patchy. At every start, the wind was at the correct speed to kick off the race, but there clearly were a couple of errors on the course, but the guys that did a better job of that won the race.

“Francesco and I get to discuss the [pres-start] strategy before the start. There is certain times where you are the helmsman and you make the decision, and the other guy is really doing the foil trimming, and every time you are the helmsman you have to make the decision. It’s been a fun process: it’s something completely new, never done before in the Cup, so it’s been really cool experience. Felt good to come off the line well both times”.

Dean Barker, Helmsman – New York American Magic “We were looking forward to having a good close race with Team NZ, it was nice to have a small advantage at the beginning, but when you drop off the foil it’s sort of game over. These boats are challenging at the bottom wind range”.

Sir Ben Ainslie, Skipper – INEOS Team UK “Tough day, particularly in lighter air we are struggling. There is certainly a lot for us to look at in terms of what went wrong. The other three teams are doing a much better job than we are, so we’ve got to figure that out pretty quickly. All boats stopped, some more than others”.

Ray Davies joins New Zealand SailGP Team in expanded coaching role

• New Zealand

The New Zealand SailGP Team has been bolstered by the appointment of Ray Davies as coach.

An incredibly successful sailor with more than 20 years’ experience in America’s Cup campaigns, Davies brings a wealth of knowledge to the New Zealand SailGP Team. He joins the team as an extension to his senior role with Emirates Team New Zealand where he drives the on-water performance of the sailing team.

Davies said: “It’s fantastic to join the New Zealand SailGP Team. I’ve worked with many of the athletes in this team over the years and I’m really excited about the opportunity to help them achieve success. Having this group together consistently in different formats of racing across both the America’s Cup and SailGP is a powerful combination.”

New Zealand SailGP Team co-CEO Peter Burling said: “It’s great to have Ray onboard. He’s someone a lot of our team have worked with and have a really strong relationship with going back to when we joined Emirates Team New Zealand.

“He’s obviously a very skilled and analytical sailor and has spent a lot of time sailing in these waters in San Francisco so it’s great to have him here for this event as well as Season 3.”

The New Zealand SailGP Team took time to find their feet early this season without a coach, and Burling believes the appointment of Davies will help take the team to the next level.

“Ray’s role with the team will be making sure everyone gets the most out of themselves and the team really maximises its performance. He’ll be integral in helping us through pre-briefing, debriefing and ensuring we keep improving out on the water. That’s something we felt we lacked a little bit over the last couple of events in being able to make those adjustments and improving during the day so Ray will really help us with that.

"He has great attention to detail and is good at working with large groups. There’s a lot of different elements that make things click and he’s a great character to bring everything together.”

Davies said with the data available to all SailGP Teams through the Oracle Cloud, there were plenty of opportunities to find efficiencies.

“There’s so much data available to us so our focus is making sure the boat is being sailed as efficiently as possible, comparing how we’re sailing against the other teams to make sure if someone has a speed edge that we find out why and get on top of that early, analyse the videos and make sure primarily that we’re sailing the boat really well and we’re not losing races because of boat handling or communication. We’ll tidy up that side of it first and then focus on racing around the track like a normal yacht race.

“With this exciting format of racing with a lot of high performance boats racing at speed on a tight course, how the team reacts in real time and positioning the boat has a massive impact on the end result.”

After more than three months since the last SailGP event, New Zealand’s F50 Amokura splashed down on San Francisco Bay on Saturday for the team’s first training session ahead of the Mubadala United States Sail Grand Prix.

The fleet has spent the last two days in the south bay by the Tech Site getting back up to speed.

Grinder Josh Junior has been ruled out of the Mubadala United States Sail Grand Prix after undergoing minor surgery on his knee last month.

James Wierzbowski, who featured for New Zealand during the Italy and Great Britain Sail Grand Prixes, re-joins the team in Junior’s absence. Wierzbowski will also cover for Andy Maloney as flight controller at the SailGP Season 3 opener in Bermuda in May, with Maloney and his wife expecting their first baby.

Currently sitting in fifth position on the overall leaderboard, New Zealand is unable to make it into the $1 million Grand Final Championship race, but Burling is eyeing a big performance in San Francisco.

“The focus for the team this week is about making big strides forward and ending the season on a high. We’ve got a great chance of securing fourth position in the overall league which is our goal. “It really felt like over the last three events (France, Spain and Australia Sail Grand Prixes) that we’ve had good chances of getting through to the final each time and not quite made it, so it’ll be really pleasing to finish off the season strongly.”

While the New Zealand SailGP Team may not be able to take out the top prize on the water, it is on the cusp of claiming the inaugural Impact League trophy.

A second leaderboard which runs alongside the Season Championship, the Impact League tracks the positive actions teams take to reduce their overall footprint and help accelerate inclusivity in sailing.

There will be two podiums in San Francisco, with the winner of the Impact League crowned alongside the Season Champion and taking home a USD $100,000 prize for its Race for the Future partner.

New Zealand has led the Impact League since its inception this season and currently holds a commanding lead at the top of the table, 51 points clear of second placed Great Britain.

You can watch all the action from the Mubadala United States Sail Grand Prix live on NZHerald.co.nz and Sky Sport NZ from 10am on Sunday March 27 and Monday March 28.

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NGĀTI WHĀTUA ŌRĀKEI NAME AND BLESS ‘TAIHORO’, EMIRATES TEAM NEW ZEALAND’S BOAT TO DEFEND THE 37th AMERICA’S CUP.

In a stirring ceremony today, Iwi manaaki Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei gifted and blessed the name ‘Taihoro’ on the boat that Emirates Team New Zealand will sail in their defence of the 37th America’s Cup. The launch event took place at the Team’s base in Auckland’s Wynyard Point, witnessed by friends, family, Sponsors, and Suppliers. 

Marama Royal, Chair of the Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei Trust, elaborated on the profound meaning behind the name ‘Taihoro’ which was inspired from Taihoro-Nukurangi, and translates to “To move swiftly as the sea between both sky and earth.” She explained, “Taihoro-Nukurangi captures the dynamic essence of the sea (Tai), the concept of speed (Horo), the earth’s movement (Nuku), and the expanse of the sky (Rangi).”

‘Taihoro’ symbolises the boat’s evolutionary journey. It represents a transcendence of traditional boundaries, creating a connection between the sea and sky. This vessel is more than a mere craft; it harnesses the power of nature, seamlessly transitioning between realms. ‘Taihoro’ is not just traversing the ocean; it bridges the gap between sea and sky in its quest for victory.”

‘Taihoro’ was proudly christened by Former New Zealand Prime Minister and Emirates Team New Zealand Patron Helen Clark. ‘Taihoro’ encompasses all of the design, innovation and build work by the entire Team over the past three years.

Geoff Senior, Emirates Team New Zealand’s Head of Construction has overseen the build of the boat which started over 10 months ago in the purpose-built Emirates Team New Zealand boat building yard with 45 boat builders working throughout, totalling over 85,000 hours to complete.

“This has been a hugely technical boat build for the construction team.” said Senior.

“The design team have certainly pushed the envelope with the design of ‘Taihoro’ which has tested our build team the whole way through. But we are so lucky to have such experience in our boat building team who are some of the best in the business. This is probably the 14 th Emirates Team New Zealand boat that some of them have built. In saying this, at the other end of the spectrum, we are really proud to have also had 10 boat building apprentices in the ranks that have been training throughout the build also.”

‘Taihoro’ was transported weeks ago to the Emirates Team New Zealand base under the cover of darkness and has since been subject to a comprehensive fit out by the technical hydraulic, mechatronic, electronic and shore crew teams custom fitting the thousands of components and systems ready to hand over to the sailing team to begin its commissioning and sea trials which have been undertaken on Auckland harbour over the past week.

“These moments are always especially proud occasions for everyone in the team.” said Emirates Team New Zealand CEO Grant Dalton.

“So much of what the team does has to be kept secret from friends and family for obvious reasons and the work involves a huge amount of dedication, commitment, and time. So, it is always special to share the result of that effort with them at our home base naming and presenting ‘Taihoro’ in partnership with Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei who again have given our boat a really special and meaningful identity.

This is the boat which we will take to Barcelona to defend the Americas’ Cup for New Zealand later this year and the name ‘Taihoro’ helps us to carry our identity to Barcelona and to share our country’s innovation and culture on the world stage.”

Skipper Peter Burling has been at the helm as ‘Taihoro’ has been commissioned over the past week having been rolled out of the shed on Friday last week.

“This is a really exciting time, as the different America’s Cup teams have been rolling out of their sheds. Obviously there is a lot of interest in what each other’s boats look like, but our 100% focus is on ‘Taihoro’ and working through our ongoing development program getting it up to speed.

We don’t have long sailing in Auckland before we start shipping up to Barcelona, so it is an intense but exciting time for the team.”

Emirates have been supporting the team for 20 years since 2004 as proud naming Sponsor of the team, their brand across on the mainsail and positioned on the hull just forward of the name ‘Taihoro’.

Boutros Boutros, Executive Vice President Corporate Communications, Marketing & Brand for Emirates Airline, commented on the newly named boat: “Emirates is proud to support the team’s further defence of the 37th edition of the America’s Cup. With cutting-edge technology and advanced aerodynamics rolled out for ‘Taihoro’, and the exceptional talent of the team, we’re confident they will maintain their winning legacy and bring home the coveted trophy later this year.”

Among all of the close friends of the Team at the naming ceremony was long time and proud sponsor Toyota New Zealand and their CEO Neeraj Lala who was seeing ‘Taihoro’ for the very first time.

“As Emirates Team New Zealand prepares to compete in Barcelona, we stand proudly behind the team, knowing they carry not just our brand, but the support of New Zealanders nationwide.  We wish the team every success as they strive to retain the Cup, marking a milestone of over 30 years partnership with Toyota New Zealand. We’re excited to continue our collaboration with Emirates Team New Zealand for the 37th America’s Cup. This longstanding relationship underscores our shared commitment to innovation and sustainability, exemplified by our joint efforts in developing hydrogen-powered chase boats.”

As has become accustomed, emblazoned across the red bow is OMEGA who, since 1995 have shared an enduring passion for innovation and design with Emirates Team New Zealand declaring, “This new AC75 is another stunning example of their dedication to their world class design and sailing precision, and we’re so proud to continue our support of the crew in this exciting America’s Cup year.”

The bold gold star of Estrella Damm proudly sits on the mainsail, the world famous beer brand returning as official Sponsor of Emirates Team New Zealand now the America’s Cup is taking place in Spain once again. “We are delighted to be back in partnership with Emirates Team New Zealand, renewing a bond that goes back seventeen years to our collaboration in Valencia during the 2007 America’s Cup. That unique experience laid the foundation for a robust and enduring relationship, resulting in the recent announcement of our sponsorship of the New Zealand team.” said Jorge Villavecchia, CEO of Damm “Barcelona, the city where we began 148 years ago and which, through our products, we export to over 130 countries around the world, will this year host one of the most prestigious global sporting events. We have been working hard all this time to make this dream come true. We are looking forward to enjoying one of the world’s greatest sailing contests, which will place our city in the international spotlight.”

The countdown is well and truly on to the start of racing in Barcelona on August 22 nd – just 126 days to go.

The Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron is New Zealand’s leading yacht club, with an illustrious history dating back to our formation in 1871. The RNZYS is still the official home of the America’s Cup after Emirates Team New Zealand, representing the RNZYS, defended the oldest sporting trophy in the world at the 36th America’s Cup in Auckland in 2021. The RNZYS has a wide range of events taking place to mark this momentous occasion. With thousands of races per calendar year, many social events and a Members Bar open seven days a week, we invite you to join us and enjoy what we have to offer.

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Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron Inc 181 Westhaven Drive, Westhaven Marina, Auckland 1011, New Zealand (09) 360-6800

NRL: Leading rugby league commentator Paul Kent reportedly stood down after brawl footage emerges

Rugby league journalist Paul Kent has been stood down after a Sydney brawl. Credits: Image - Sky Sport, video - Newshub

Leading Australian rugby league commentator Paul Kent has reportedly been stood down from his duties with Fox Sport and the Daily Telegraph newspaper, after he was involved in a street brawl at Sydney.

Footage has emerged on social media showing Kent outside the Totti's Rozelle restaurant, seemingly challenging another man to fight. The two men push each other across the street, with Kent ending up on his head against a tree.

Kent, 54, can be heard calling the other man "a dog" and "doghead".

Sydney Morning Herald reports a spokesperson for both media outlets says he has been "stood down, pending an immediate investigation".

More from Newshub

NSW Police did not respond to the incident and were unaware of the video.

Kent's abrasive style has made him a polarising figure among rugby league fans. He is also a boxing commentator.

Last month, he returned to Fox's NRL 360 show, after nine-month absence, as he faced domestic violence charges.

Kent was accused of attacking his ex-partner, but was found not guilty of common assault, intentionally choking a person without consent and assault occasioning actual bodily harm.