Update
LIKE THE VERY FIRST TIME – Jack Griffin Stars and Stripes – back in the America’s Cup. The name, at least. Mike Buckley’s and Taylor Canfield’s all-American challenge was the first late entry announced in December by the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron. They politely but unnecessarily asked for and obtained Dennis Conner’s blessing to use the Stars and Stripes name. It’s certainly a nice touch. Challenging out of Long Beach Yacht Club, they have assembled
an impressive team. Canfield was the 2013 World Match Racing champion. He and Buckley defeated American Magic led by Dean Barker and Terry Hutchinson in the 2018 Congressional Cup. Heading the technical effort, JB Braun brings his experience as
North Sails director of design and engineering. Braun was in the design teams for Oracle Racing, Puma, Abu Dhabi and the Comanche project. COO Tod Reynolds is well-known from the Chicago Match Racing Center. In addition to running that operation, he managed the Chicago AC World Series stopover in 2016. General Counsel Melinda Erkelens has been with five AC
campaigns, most recently with Artemis Racing in 2013 and 2017. CEO Justin Shaffer is a Silicon Valley entrepreneur-turned-venture capitalist and a keen sailor. As this is being written he is in Sydney
14 SEAHORSE
preparing to race to Hobart on Boxing Day. A successful business- man, Shaffer started a company and then sold it to Facebook. More interestingly, Shaffer previously headed new media
operations for Major League Baseball Advanced Media (MLBAM). If you want to learn about the commercial side of sports in the 21st century, study MLBAM. Some people keep pumping money into unrealistic visions of
building a sports entertainment business around sailing by using last-century models based on broadcast television. Professional sailors and their backers will probably learn more and waste less money by watching how Shaffer’s MLBAM experience guides the business side of Stars and Stripes. Having this leadership group and the only all-American team will make this challenger one to watch closely, off the water as well as on the racecourse. Of the other late entries, we know much less, but it is intriguing.
The Royal Malta Yacht Club has serious sailing nous from organising the Middle Sea Race. Their Malta Altus Challenge is backed by Pasquale Cataldi, an Italian who heads a cryptocurrency fund based in Malta. He is also the founder and CEO of Altus Lifestyle, an Italian company currently proposing various real estate development projects in Italy and Houston, Texas. Cataldi is not a sailor. His first exposure to the America’s Cup
CHRISTOPHE LAUNAY
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