BMW Oracle still top of the table in Dubai

(Paul Todd / Outdoor Images)

The last hurrah for the America’s Cup yachts which were last the weapons of choice in 2007 still sees the current cup holders, BMW Oracle, topping the table of six in the Louis Vuitton Trophy regatta in Dubai.

Britain, like Italy’s Azzurra, has already packed its AC bags, leaving the six members of the World Sailing Teams Association, formed to fill the hiatus when the America’s Cup was bogged down in litigation, to fight it out. The are moving on to a winter of training in multihulls and then take delivery of their AC45 wing sail catamarans, currently being built in New Zealand.

At the same time, the teams, so far two formal challengers and the defender, are working on the deign and build of the first of two AC72 wing sail catamarans which will be raced in a world series in 2012.

Two other teams which the organisers hope will declare their hands soon, Emirates Team New Zealand and, from Russia, Synergy are also on parade in Dubai while the Franco-German All4One, carrying this season the flag of Germany on the stern, is still assessing finance and timing ahead of the next Cup in 2013. The venue should be announced in the next few weeks.

Britain’s sailors picked up three more medals on the final day of racing at the Perth International Regatta in W. Australia, taking the total to five at this test event for the 2011 ISAF Sailing World Championships.

Dylan Fletcher and Alain Sign, picked up their first medal together – a silver – in the 49er event, while in the 470 men Nic Asher and Elliot Willis took silver, and Luke Patience and Stuart Bithell won bronze.

Giles Scott claimed silver for Great Britain in the Finn class on the penultimate day of the Perth International Regatta on Saturday (20 November), with Paul Goodison taking Laser bronze

With no medal race to improve their standings, Ben Ainslie finished the regatta in fifth overall, with teammates Ed Wright and Andrew Mills in sixth and seventh respectively.

In Guadeloupe, Pete Goss finished 14th in the Class 40 division of the singlehanded Route du Rhum race from St. Malo.

In Cape Town, Canada’s Derek Hatfield completed the top three podium on the first leg of the Velux 5 Oceans singlehanded round the world race behind America’s Brad van Liew and Poland’s Zbigniew Gutkovski.