- Paul G. Allen joins OneWorld (08/07/01)   (source : sailsail.com)

TechTV announced today that it will join forces with Craig McCaw on the OneWorld Challenge campaign to win the 31st America's Cup. Vulcan Northwest - which owns TechTV - will support the campaign on behalf of TechTV through a $10 million sponsorship to the America's Cup syndicate, which was founded by McCaw. The San Francisco-based cable television channel is the leading network covering technology news, information and entertainment 24 hours a day. Vulcan Northwest Inc. was founded by Paul G. Allen in 1986 to manage his personal and professional endeavors, including various investments, more than 100 portfolio companies, the six Paul G. Allen Foundations, First & Goal Inc., the Experience Music Project museum, Clear Blue Sky Productions and others. Vulcan is headquartered in Seattle, Washington. "There is no better partner to have in this effort than my friend Paul and the team at TechTV. Paul is a true sports enthusiast (Allen owns the Portland Trail Blazers NBA team and the Seattle Seahawks NFL franchise), a man who shares my concern for environmental stewardship, and someone who loves the adventure of boating and being on the water," said McCaw. Today, underwriters of OneWorld at this point include Craig McCaw, Paul Allen's TechTV, SAIC, and Ford/Lincoln Mercury.

- New partners for OneWorld Challenge ? (06/04/01)   (source : Delphi forum)

Pete Montgomery interviewed Peter Gilmour on RadioNZ. Two months ago as tech-stock prices nosedived and eroded the wealth of syndicate underwriter Craig McCaw, Peter Gilmour indicated the challenge was hurting financially. McCaw paid huge dollars to lure Black Boat crewmen Andrew Taylor, Craig Monk, Jeremy Scantlebury, Rick Dodson and Matthew Mason to OneWorld while its heavy artillery will come from the sketch pads of Kiwi Lauri Davidson, who had an acrimonious parting with TNZ last year. "There have difficulties over the last two months; the downturn in the tech sector and the way it affected Craig McCaw’s companies dramatically and reasonably resulted in a cut back in expenditure" Gilmour said, "We are now looking at new partners and new initiatives and are seeking new sponsors." In the same time, Bob Ratliffe, OWC's director of marketing and communication, indicated the syndicate had nailed additional funds and he suggested doubts over the syndicate's cup participation were probably more in the minds of the media as opposed to the syndicate members. "We have made a tremendous amount of progress (in the last couple of months) and we will have some announcements to make in the very near future," he said from Seattle. Asked whether he expected the team to amass close to its touted $US80 million war chest, Bob Ratliffe suggested OneWorld would be in the ballpark. "We feel confident we will have enough money to achieve our goals when it comes to the design, building and sailing programme which we have laid out for ourselves," he said. Yachting circles are suggesting yet another software company may have stepped into the world of America's Cup which already boasts the presence of Larry Ellison's Oracle and a German company, SAP, which has become a member of Team New Zealand's family of five. The syndicate is now upbeat about its financial position while the challenge's Australian skipper, Peter Gilmour, and crew, which includes numerous big names from Team New Zealand's successful cup defence early last year, have been back practising off Auckland for several weeks. Peter Gilmour indicated the OneWorld team was in Auckland to tick of additional testing targets. "The conditions here are so unique in the way the wind and waves behave. You can get 15 knots in flat water and 11 knots in very lumpy water in a north-easterly", he said. Ratliffe said it would be the last testing in Auckland before the syndicate began constructing its first boat in September or October.

- More and more money for OneWorld (04/11/01)   (source : scuttlebutt)

Craig McCaw has assembled a tremendous team of sailors, designers and boat builders for the 2003 America's Cup campaign. However, in an effort to respond appropriately to changed market dynamics, and redoubling his focus on his telecommunications investments, McCaw has asked the OneWorld management team to look for commercial and private partners to take the OneWorld Challenge forward to its goal of winning the 31st America's Cup. The syndicate has already amassed significant resources, having invested over US$ 30 million of its original budget of US$80 million. CEO Gary Wright commented, "We're tremendously happy with the strength of the team OneWorld Challenge has put together, including one of the most potent design groups ever to contest an America's Cup. It offers potential partners an extraordinary platform for participation in perhaps the most exciting Cup match ever."

- Introducing OneWorld Challenge (04/10/01)   (source : seattleyachtclub.org)

OneWorld Challenge crew has left New Zealand and is now in Seattle for a short period training. This presents Seattle Yacht Club members with an exciting opportunity to get to know the OneWorld Challenge syndicate team better at an America's Cup Reception at SYC on April 30. During the event, syndicate leadership and crew will be introduced so share their view of what's ahead as they prepare to take the SYC burgee into competition.

- Another Panel Case ? (03/21/01)   (source : Pegis on Delphi forum)

According to the rumor mill, lawyers for Prada and TNZ are challenging sail designer Rob Hook. Hired by Illbruck (German team) to do their Volvo sails and OneWorld (Seattle) to design their America's Cup sails, Prada and TNZ have taken issue with the arrangement saying it breaks the AC rules against teams sharing designers. Arbitration is expected soon.

- Mark Chisnell joins OneWorld (02/16/01)   (source : madforsailing)

Mark Chisnell will be joining Ben Ainslie at the One World America's Cup challenge, and will be leaving Britain before the end of February to take up US residency in Seattle. He will continue to write exclusively for madforsailing.com as Editor at Large (albeit a small one). Mark Chisnell has been a professional racing sailor, navigator and tactician for more than a decade, in classes as diverse as International 14s, Mumm 36s and Maxi yachts. Competitive credits include the 1987 British and 1995 Nippon America's Cup Challenges.

- News from Craig McCaw (01/15/01)   (source : NY Times)

Craig McCaw, the Seattle telecommunications entrepreneur, has at least two things in common with Larry Ellison, the president and chief executive officer of the Oracle Corporation: a fortune that is reportedly worth billions, and a new syndicate readying to race for the America's Cup in 2003. What was not known until recently is that, had the timing been different, McCaw and Ellison could have been allies — instead of opponents — in an unprecedented cup challenge. It appears that Ellison, one of several fledgling challengers for the America's Cup in 2003, may not have entered the on-the-water fray for strictly competitive reasons. His involvement may have stemmed from a desire to trump one of his present or former business rivals, the co- founders of Microsoft, Bill Gates and Paul Allen. That revelation came out last week in an e-mail interview with McCaw, who was making his first public comments about his own cup program, the One World Challenge, since launching it last June. He said of Ellison: "Ironically, it turns out that part of his motivation for competing in 2003 was as a result of a perception that either Gates or Allen was behind the Seattle effort. By the time we talked, we were both past the point of either stopping or merging our efforts. His team will be a very, very tough opponent." Now that the lines have been drawn, McCaw's will be, too. His sailing team — which is already training in New Zealand — is led by the Australian cup veteran Peter Gilmour, and features a core group of sailors from last year's cup-winning Team New Zealand. Other cup veterans include the Americans Kimo Worthington, Morgan Larson and Kevin Hall, and the Australian James Spithill. Among the cup newcomers are Jonathan and Charlie McKee, from Seattle, who won bronze medals at the Sydney Olympics, and Ben Ainslie, from Britain, who won gold at the Summer Games. McCaw's design team also has a seasoned, international flavor. The program is headed by Lawrie Davidson, one of the masterminds of the last two winning New Zealand efforts. The latest addition is the American naval architect Bruce Nelson, who oversaw Paul Cayard's America One technical team in 2000. The McCaw cup era began on a controversial note. Shortly after the last cup was over, rumors surfaced regarding a wealthy businessman raiding Team New Zealand personnel. Gates's name, among others, was floated. But when McCaw turned out to be the mystery man, many wondered why he had built his squad's foundation on foreign talent. "When we began our effort, we were looking for the best sailors in the world who were willing to try to win while both being nice guys and doing something more meaningful," McCaw said. "We spoke to a number of New Zealanders in large part because a number of them were disillusioned by the way their effort wound down. We were impressed by the combination of environmental sensitivities with great sailing. Our effort, however, was always about a global gathering of talented people with a conscience." McCaw says he is a student of the cup and he also seems sensitive to how his campaign will ultimately be judged. "I've followed the cup since I was very young," he said. "I love the history and I've found its evolution fascinating." McCaw did not specifically talk about the budget for his campaign, but he often returned to the theme that he would not measure success solely by the number of races won. " We hope that the One World Environmental Foundation will receive both visibility and financial support as a result of our America's Cup effort," he said. "We're hoping to organize specific projects in New Zealand and elsewhere that will illustrate simple, effective courses of action for ordinary people to take on behalf of the environment," he added. During the last cup, McCaw made a substantial contribution to Team New Zealand. "I remain in awe of what they accomplished with very little," he said. "They've provided ample evidence that a lot can be done with a little less." Restraint and accountability are not the concepts one might expect to hear espoused by a billionaire America's Cup player. McCaw says he wants to do it differently.

- Ben Ainslie joins OneWorld (12/26/00)   (source : Elly & Madforsailing)

There is some dock talk concerning British Challenge and, particularly, a purchase of the "hardware and technology" from the defunct Nippon Challenge. But, in the same time, Ben Ainslie has now signed a deal with the One World America's Cup team led by Craig McCaw, which could see the Laser gold medallist helming in the next Louis Vuitton Cup. Ainslie has been in talks with McCaw's Seattle-based outfit for several months and it has been known for some time that the syndicate skipper Peter Gilmour has been very keen to bring him on board. The One World team already includes a number of key former Team New Zealand sailors and some top Americans, among them Morgan Larson and the McKee brothers. Ainslie had been waiting to see if a British America's Cup team would materialise, but decided he could wait no longer as negotiations on that front continue, and with the outcome in doubt. The crunch came after a five-day visit to Auckland where One World is already in business racing USA 55 and USA 51. Ainslie spent his first day on the mainsheet traveller and his second on the grinders before Gilmour gave him the steering wheels for the whole of the third day. It proved a memorable moment for the young Lymington-based star, who was impressed with the grace and power of the yachts and the challenge of assimilating all the information flowing through the afterguard. When he got home, Ainslie discussed it again with his former Laser coach John Derbyshire and with Rod Carr, the secretary-general of the Royal Yachting Association who is organising the British bid, and decided to go for it. "With the residency application forms for foreign teams having to be filed before Christmas, it came to crunch time. I either went with them or stuck it out waiting for the British to go ahead," said Ainslie. He said he was sad not to be involved with a British campaign which may be led by Star class silver medallist, Ian Walker. "I really hope the British thing does take off and, if it does, I'd be sad not to be part of that. But really there is a huge opportunity to learn from all the top people in the game at One World and it came to the point where I couldn't wait any longer." Ainslie was tight-lipped about his renumeration but there can be little doubt that he will be handsomely rewarded by McCaw, whose syndicate will be one of the four big spenders in the next Louis Vuitton/America's Cup series. "It's a reasonable salary but at this stage in my career money is not the objective - it's all about learning and doing as much as I can to get to the top level," he said. Ainslie is hoping he will get the chance to helm in the Louis Vuitton and even the America's Cup, but is realistic about his chances with tough competition expected within the One World syndicate for positions throughout all of its boats. "Helming is where my ability will be best used but it depends on the team and where they think I'd fit in best," he said. The loss of the Laser gold medallist to a foreign team is a blow for the British effort, but in the long run the experience Ainslie will gain with One World could prove invaluable for Britain in future years. It is also doubtful whether Ainslie would have driven a British challenger, given the likely involvement of Andy Beadsworth in a British syndicate. In the meantime Ainslie has to go and "live" in Seattle for a few months as he takes another big step out of Lasers. He will still fulfill his commitments in the Admiral's Cup but he is looking forward to getting back to Auckland for another taste of the big time. "I just learnt so much in the five days I was there - it was unbelievable," he said.

- Ben Ainslie with OneWorld ? (12/07/00)   (source : Telegraph.co.uk)

Ben Ainslie 's first significant step out of his Olympic gold-medal winning Laser singlehander will be on to the helm of Robert Condon's 45-footer as part of the three-boat British Admiral's Cup team. Ainslie will steer the boat alongside two-time Olympian Adrian Stead, who skippered the top-scoring Mumm 36 in the 1999 Admiral's Cup and this summer the Mumm 30 which became the first British yacht to win the Tour Voile round France race. But whilst he waits to see whether an America's Cup bid does get off the ground in Britain, Ben Ainslie has a firm offer from Peter Gilmour to join the big budget OneWorld team from Seattle funded by Craig McCaw.