Africa won the battle of the continents on Tuesday when Team Shosholoza chalked up her third victory of the week-long Trapani Louis Vuitton Act 8 off Sicily with a walk-over win of four minutes and 22 seconds against China Team.
South Africa and China are both first-time challengers for the world’s oldest sporting trophy.
The Chinese, off whom South Africa also took a victory in Sweden last month, should — on paper, at least — have the advantage on South Africa’s fledgling team, as they have previous America’s Cup experience.
China Team is led by Chaoyong Wang, the chairperson of a
leading Chinese venture capital firm who formed a partnership with Le Defi, a French challenger in the past two editions of the America’s Cup, to acquire their knowledge base and assets, including two America’s Cup-class boats from the previous event.
Earlier in the week, Team Shosholoza took wins off the French K-Challenge and United Internet Germany.
The South Africans were disappointed earlier in the day to lose against local favourites +39 Challenge after a tightly contested neck-and-neck race, which they lost by a mere 43 seconds.
Team Shosholoza and the Italians were fairly even at the start, but +39, who have ”Sicilian” emblazoned across their mainsail and have spent more time training in the area than any other team, took advantage of local knowledge to play the light and flukey winds. — Sapa