Monsoon Cup: Talented Field

World Match Racing Tour President Scott MacLeod (USA/GBR) and Monsoon Cup promoted Peter Gilmour (AUS) have confirmed that six of the twelve teams entered in next week's 2nd Annual Monsoon Cup in Terengganu, Malaysia are reps of AC 32 teams (bold, below):

Jesper Bank (DEN) United Internet Team Germany
Paolo Cian (ITA) Team Shosholoza
Sebastien Col (FRA) Areva Challenge
Peter Gilmour (AUS) PST
Bjorn Hansen (SWE) Team Apport.net
Peter Holmberg (ISV) Alinghi
Tiffany Koo (MAL) Team Selango Gapurna
Adam Minoprio (NZL) Black Match Racing
Wearn Haw Tan (SIN) China Team
Mathieu Richard (FRA) Saba Sailing Team
James Spithill (AUS) Luna Rossa Challenge
Ian Williams (GBR) Team Pindar

Great to see China Team's Wearn Haw Tan (SIN) in the lineup, and Malaysia's rising sailing star Tiffany Koo. Ms Koo turns 22 on 29 Nov. Ian Williams is the current leader of the WMRT, and Cup veteran Peter Gilmour is the defending champ of the Monsoon Cup and the winner the past three years of the WMRT.

Racing takes place 29 Nov through 3 Dec. The semifinal and final rounds, Dec. 2 and 3, will be broadcast live on the Internet on Sail.tv as well as live on Eurosport, The Sailing Channel, Fox Australia and Showtime Middle East (check local listings for times).



Tiffany Koo (MAS) qualified for the Monsoon
Cup by dominating the Malaysian Match
Racing Championship in September.
Photo: Sia Hong Kiau/Starpic.

"International Fame and Fortune"

So this is why we do it? Lifestyles of the rich and famous?

According to an article in Malaysia's The Star this morning entitled "Sailing Into Wealth," Alinghi's Cup-winning crew "live incredible lifestyles and enjoy celebrity status wherever they go. They have been immortalised forever on Swiss Post stamps."

Despite being a bit over the top, it's a very nice article about the Monsoon Cup, next week's World Match Racing Tour event in Malaysia. It will feature, as did October's Allianz Cup in San Francisco, a number of competitors representing current AC teams including Paolo Cian (Shosholoza), Sebastien Col (AREVA), Peter Holmberg (Alinghi) and James Spithill (Luna Rossa).

Why Malaysia? As the article explains, "Malaysians tend to forget that this country has a rich maritime history – Malay sailors in the 15th and 16th century were already navigating the surrounding seas and had a reputation as seamen and skillful boat builders." Remember, too, that Malaysia hosts one of the seven non-European F1 Grands Prix.

Senior Malaysian officials have long expressed interest in the America's Cup. The Monsoon Cup, now in its second year, and related developments are worth keeping an eye on.

So stay tuned -- and that will be easy as one hears there will be a larger worldwide TV audience for this year's Monsoon Cup than any of the AC 32 Acts have so far garnered, including a live internet feed on Sail.tv.

Below, Monsoon Cup promoter Peter Gilmour (AUS) giving the thumbs up during the inaugural event in the waters off Kuala Terengganu, Malaysia in 2005. A Cup campaigner since the early 80's, Gilly won his own event last year and will be racing in the Monsoon Cup again next week. Photo: Victor K.K. Ng/The Star.


Peter Gilmour reports that there is strong interest in Malaysia to
challenge for AC 33.