Sir Jim Ratcliffe reflects on the 37th America’s Cup.
“The path to greatness, particularly in sport, is never linear, certainly not easy and often takes time, patience and a dogged determination to focus on the ultimate goal – winning the America’s Cup.
“In the Cup match, we faced a well-prepared team in Emirates Team New Zealand who were clinical in their execution of racing and proved why it is so hard to win the America’s Cup from the Defender. Our congratulations to the whole team on their defence of the America’s Cup.
“Reflecting on the past eight weeks, we’re all very proud of what Sir Ben Ainslie and the team have achieved. There can be no denying that there have been ups and downs along the way; which is never good for the blood pressure! But that’s sport, and that’s why we love it. We have seen how Ben and the team have interrogated the data, optimised the technology and refined their sailing strategies to unlock more performance from the boat and the sailing team race by race. This progress is testament to the unquestioning commitment from everyone in the team both in Barcelona and Brackley; a huge effort that everyone should be very proud of.
“And in being in the America’s Cup match to face the Kiwis, we made history along the way. To be the first ever British team to win a Challenger Series, the first British boat in the America’s Cup Match in 60 years and the first British boat to score points in a Cup match in 90 years shows the new standard for British sailing that this team has set.
“What we also saw throughout the 37th America’s Cup was a huge step on from the last cup; with better competition, closer racing and convergence of performance across the teams which has led this to be one of the best Cups yet.”