2007 America's Cup
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The 2007 America's Cup will be the thirty-second edition of the tournament. The Alinghi team will defend the America's Cup in 2007, according to announcements made following their victory. It was announced on November 27, 2003 that the venue would be Valencia, Spain. This will be the first time that the America's Cup will be held in Europe in over 150 years. The deadline to challenge for the cup was April 29, 2005, by which time eleven challengers from nine countries had submitted formal entries.
Normally, the country that holds the cup hosts the next event; however, because Alinghi is based in Switzerland, which is a landlocked country, organizers put hosting rights to a competitive bid, which Valencia won. Alinghi has since constructed a base in the Spanish city.
In preparation for the 2007 championship, there were several regattas leading up to the Cup races, called "Acts." In 2004, there were three acts, Act 1 held September 2004 in Marseille, France; Act 2 held October 2004 in Valencia, Spain; and Act 3 held October 2004, also in Valencia. These events featured fleet and match racing between America's Cup class yachts representing the syndicates that will be vying for the Cup in 2007. Points are awarded for each Act, and the team with the highest score at the end of the year is declared the ACC (America's Cup Class) Champion for that year. In 2004, Emirates Team New Zealand narrowly won over second place American challenger BMW Oracle Racing and third place Swiss defender Team Alinghi.
The schedule of Acts in 2005 included Acts 4 and 5 in Valencia (June 16-June 26), Acts 6 and 7 in Malmö, Sweden (August 25-September 4) and Acts 8 and 9 in Trapani, Italy (September 29-October 9).
- 32nd America's Cup Official Website
- Peter Lester NZ yachting commentator