Jeddah Preliminary Regatta: the opening day

The curtain rose today on the America's Cup Preliminary Regatta Jeddah, presented by NEOM, marking the America's Cup's debut in the Middle East: on the eve of the first day of official racing, all six teams participated in a Practice Race and a series of institutional appointments: 

The official press conference
The opening of the public Race Village
The inaugural ceremony, a "Grand Opening," featuring on stage the stars of the 37th America's Cup

«We are really happy to be in Jeddah, a beautiful city that has given us an extraordinary welcome», said Ruggero Tita, one of the helmsmen of Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli at the press conference. «For the first time the America's Cup is coming to the Red Sea and it is a unique opportunity for all of us. The conditions are excellent, and we are looking forward to measuring ourselves with the other teams, all very strong competitors. We know we have spent less time than our opponents on the AC40s so we don't have very high expectations, but we will certainly give it our all to bring home good results».

For the Practice Race, the Race Committee was able to organize both match races and the three scheduled fleet races. The weather conditions were ideal, with sunshine, NNW wind around 8 /12 knots and little wave. The racecourse, furthermore, positioned right in front of the Corniche, allowed spectators to view the boats directly from the dock.

The local public expressed great interest in an event that literally catapults Saudi Arabia into the grand theater of ultimate sailing: this was confirmed by the delegation of very young sailors who visited Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli's base for a souvenir photo with Skipper and Team Director Max Sirena.

With the Practice Race over, in which the Italian crew finished third in all the fleet races, Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli is now preparing for tomorrow's first real challenge in this Saudi event.

Luna Rossa's sailing team consisted of: Ruggero Tita (helmsman), Marco Gradoni (helmsman), Umberto Molineris (trimmer) and Vittorio Bissaro (trimmer).