Update
ROLE MODELS – Jack Griffin In 2018 the America’s Cup Hall of Fame instituted the Sir Richard Francis Sutton Medal to encourage and recognise the spirit of the America’s Cup, as set down by the founding donors in their Deed of Gift ‘to promote friendly competition between foreign countries’. The selection committee of the America’s Cup Hall of Fame will award this medal, from time to time, to persons or entities that have exemplified that spirit in the course of their association with the America’s Cup. The Charter Recipient of the medal, presented at the 2018
America’s Cup Hall of Fame Induction at the Royal Yacht Squadron in Cowes, was Sir Richard Francis Sutton, 5th Baronet of Norwood Park (1853-1891). Sir Richard represented the Royal Yacht Squadron in the fifth challenge for the America’s Cup, held in New York in 1885. The match was best of three. During the match, on 8 September, as the iconic Lawson History
of the America’s Cup records, ‘There occurred an incident rare in the history of the Cup races and, in view of the events that followed in a few years, worthy of being commemorated in bronze.’ When manoeuvring for the start the American Defender Puritan
failed to clear Sutton’s Genesta, resulting in a collision. Within minutes of the collision the race committee disqualified Puritan, which was on port tack at the time of the accident. However, Sir Richard, in an act of sportsmanship, refused to accept a win by default. Instead, he informed the race committee: ‘We are very much obliged to you but we don’t want it in that way. We want a race; we don’t want a walkover.’ Genesta went on to lose to Puritan in two races, but Sir Richard
won the respect and admiration of his competitors and the public. And Sir Richard’s name and deed have now been commemorated in bronze with the Sutton Medal.
12 SEAHORSE
Fast forward to 2019. Not a single AC75 yacht has yet been
launched, but already there is controversy in the 36th America’s Cup. The Arbitration Panel is expected to rule by the end of April on a protest over whether some or all three of the late challenges are valid. All three claim to be in compliance. Did one, two or all three fail to make the payments called for in the Protocol? Even if they did, should that disqualify them from competing? Only in a few cases does the Protocol prescribe the penalty for a
breach. For example, any Challenger that does not participate in all the AC World Series regattas is disqualified from the Prada Cup Challenger Selection Series and (obviously) from the Match. The Protocol does not prescribe penalties for late payment of fees, but instead leaves it to the Arbitration Panel to decide what penalty, if any, should be levied. If indeed one or more of the late challengers did not pay their fees on time, why? Did somebody tell them that it would be OK? Only two members of the America’s Cup Hall of Fame are active
in this edition of the event: Patrizio Bertelli of Luna Rossa and Grant Simmer of Ineos Team UK. Induction into the Hall of Fame celebrates achievement, and Bertelli’s and Simmer’s achievements are indisputable. Bertelli currently leads his sixth challenge – topping even Sir
Thomas Lipton’s five. Grant Simmer was navigator on Australia II in 1983. He later held leadership positions in both of Alinghi’s America’s Cup victories and in one of Oracle’s. He now leads Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s Ineos team. If the Hall of Fame celebrates achievement the Sutton Medal
recognises ‘how you play the game’. There are clearly future Hall of Fame inductees active in the 36th America’s Cup. Let’s hope that there will also be some Sutton-like displays of
the spirit of friendly competition to produce modern candidates for the Sutton Medal.
BLUEGREEN/ALAMY
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100
