 |
 |
 |
|
|
|||
|
|||
|
|||
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Prada boss ends Cup adventure
AUCKLAND, New Zealand (Reuters) -- Volatile Prada boss Patrizio Bertelli has said he will not mount another challenge for the America's Cup, ending one of the most colourful and controversial campaigns in recent Cup history. Bertelli said in a short interview with Italian newspaper Gazzetta dello Sport on Sunday that his team and their stylish silver and red boats would not be at the next America's Cup, expected in 2006 or 2007. "This adventure is over," Bertelli told the newspaper. Prada have spent about $120 million on their last two challenges and Bertelli said he would now likely sell his six boats and equipment. "I could sell them, I've already had requests, even from Italy," he said. Team members in Auckland, where Swiss challengers Alinghi lead holders Team New Zealand 3-0 in the current Cup, said on Monday they had all heard of Bertelli's comments but had been told nothing. "Unfortunately there's no statement...as a team, there's nothing official to say," Prada spokeswoman Alessandra Ghezzi told Reuters. Ghezzi said Bertelli, head of the Milan fashion house and husband of designer Miuccia Prada, arrived in Auckland on Saturday and was expected to leave on Tuesday. Prada won the Louis Vuitton Cup challengers series in 1999/2000 but were thrashed 5-0 by holders Team New Zealand in the America's Cup match in 2000. They were beaten 4-0 by Alinghi in the current challengers series quarter-finals and then 3-2 by U.S. team OneWorld in the semi-finals. Bertelli's decision ends one of the most colourful chapters of recent America's Cup history. The stylish Italians won many hearts in New Zealand for their vibrancy and openness, while Bertelli became known for his heated outbursts. Prada began their latest campaign badly and Bertelli demoted principal boat designer Doug Peterson, a former America's Cup winner, after Prada lost their first two races in the long challengers qualifying round robins in October. Peterson later said he had been "terminated" by Bertelli. The incident echoed a now-famous media release Bertelli issued after Prada lost their fourth race against New Zealand in the 2000 America's Cup in which he derided skipper Francesco de Angelis for "suicidal tactics." Copyright 2003 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
