8:57 PM Fri 15 Jan 2010 GMT
The Challenger for the 33rd America's Cup has called out Societe Nautique de Geneve over comments made following the breakdown of discussions in Singapore, earlier this week.
In an Open Letter, posted on the Golden Gate Yacht Club website, the Club Commodore, Marcus Young, has strongly disputed comments made following the meeting, notably in a statement issued under the name of Brad Butterworth, skipper and CEO of Alinghi.
The actual comments made by Butterworth in the media statement to which GGYC have taken objection are not specified, however presumably it is the closing remark: 'During the course of the afternoon, I was initially instructed that BMW Oracle were keen to sign the deal, but by the time I got hold of the guys in Valencia to discuss it, Oracle had withdrawn from the agreement.'
Golden Gate are disputing that the agreement was with drawn by them and have demanded an immediate retraction. They add that th club is committed to reaching agreement on all outstanding issues before the commencement of the 33rd match.
The comments follow a meeting held on the 12th and 13th of January in Singapore facilitated by the International Sailing Federation's Racing Rules Committee Chairman, David Tillett (AUS) who is also Chairman of the International Jury appointed for the 33rd America's Cup. David Kellett ISAF Treasurer and Executive Committee member was also in attendance at Singapore.
The meeting scheduled for one day, stretched to two days, with GGYC launching another motion at the New York Supreme Court over compliance with the Deed of Gift by SNG. The specific issue was that of origin of construction (known as Construction in Country) which was one of the issues under discussion by the assembled representatives.
The move by GGYC is understood to have effectively torpedoed the discussions, even though the parties continued to discuss various issues for a second day.
The GGYC motion over Construction in Country is expected to be heard before the start of the regatta on 8 February 2010. A further Court action alleging Breach of Fiduciary Duty by SNG as the current Trustee of the America's Cup is also due to be heard, presumably after the regatta.
Both actions are understood to have irked the head of Team Alinghi, Ernesto Bertarelli prompting the rejection of the offers made by the Challenger, meaning that the 33rd match will be a best of three series, starting on 8 February 2010, in Valencia, as ordered by the New York Supreme Court.
The full text of the letter from GGYC is as follows:
M. Pierre-Yves Fimienich
Soci?t? Nautique de Gen?ve
Port Noir
CH-1223 Cologny
Switzerland
January 15, 2010
Dear Commodore Firmenich
The 33rd America's Cup
I am formally asking your yacht club to retract immediately the comments made by representatives of your America's Cup defender Alinghi.
My yacht club, BMW ORACLE Racing and our partners are owed an unreserved apology for the falsehoods set out by Brad Butterworth about the attempts to negotiate a mutual agreement in Singapore.
Our side did not withdraw the offer to settle. The opposite was true.
The final document was signed by Tom Ehman and Richard Slater on behalf of GGYC/BMW ORACLE Racing. The other signature belongs to David Kellett of the International Sailing Federation, acting as witness.
Notwithstanding the false statements made by Alingbi to the press, GGYC remains committed to resuming talks so that all the outstanding issues are cleared up before racing starts for the 33'' Match.
As Trustee of the America's Cup I am sure your club understands its responsibilities in this regard.
Yours sincerely,
Marcus Young
Golden Gate Yacht Club
by Richard Gladwell
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