The UAE probably won't host the America's Cup after all

RAS AL-KHAIMAH, U.A.E. — At least for now, a New York judge has cancelled this tiny Persian Gulf emirate’s 15 minutes of fame as host of the next America’s Cup regatta, which is supposed to take place in February.

The ruling is a blow to the current holders of the Cup, the Swiss Alinghi team, which has already established an elaborate operations base here, and a big victory for the American challengers, headed by software tycoon Larry Ellison.

Lawyers for Ellison’s BMW Oracle team argued that Alinghi's choice of Ras al-Khamiah, less than 100 miles off the coast of Iran and close to the Strait of Hormuz, posed a serious security threat to the American boat and its crew.

The Americans accused Ras al-Khaimah’s rulers of having a cozy relationship with the Tehran regime and warned that the race could be hijacked by rising tensions between Tehran and Washington over Iran’s nuclear ambitions.

In her ruling Tuesday, Judge Shirley Kornreich focused on the fine print of the Deed of Gift, a document that governs the sailing world’s most prestigious event, rather than the supposed security threats.

The Deed, which was drafted in 1857, specifies that any competition between Nov. 1 and May 1 must be held in the Southern Hemisphere. The only exception, according to Kornreich, would be the Spanish port of Valencia, which both sides accepted as a possible venue earlier in the litigation. Valencia was the host of the last Cup competition in 2007.

Although Ras al-Khaimah, part of the United Arab Emirates, is indisputably in the Northern Hemisphere, its balmy winter weather would appear to meet the requirements for summer sailing conditions.

But the dispute between Ernesto Bertarelli, the Swiss biotech magnate who heads the Alinghi team, and Ellison is not about the weather or about security threats, real and imagined. It is about control. And the two billionaires have been battling it out in court since July 2007.

Sailing is big money sport. The cost of mounting a serious America’s Cup challenge is in the same financial league as the New York Yankees’ payroll.

But unlike other big money sports, sailing does not have a commissioner’s office or a strong international governing body to settle disputes. In the case of the America’s Cup, the Deed of Gift designates the New York Yacht Club as permanent trustee of the trophy, which means that disputes are settled by New York courts.

The Deed stacks the rules in favor of the defending team, giving the defenders a kind of permanent home court advantage (which is one reason why the Americans held the cup for 132 years before finally losing it in 1983, and why they have only won it back three times since then).

Ellison has complained that this setup is a bit like having a baseball game where the umpires work for the home team.

That may be true, said Grant Simmer, Alinghi’s design coordinator, “but that’s the way it’s always been.”

“For every competition prior to [this one], the defending club appointed the officials. We have that right,” he said.

The Alinghi team says it will await Judge Kornreich’s written decision before deciding whether it will appeal.

In the meantime, Alinghi 5, the sleek catamaran that arrived here earlier this month, was back out on the water today, training as usual.

At this point, there seem to be four possible outcomes:

The race takes place in Valencia.

The two parties agree on a venue someplace in the Southern Hemisphere. This seems unlikely since the Americans and the Swiss have not been inclined to agree on anything. It also means the host city would have less than four months to prepare for the event.

The race is pushed back until after May — when daytime temperatures in the Gulf can soar past 100 degrees. And there’s still no guarantee that the Americans would show up.

Or the race is simply cancelled — due to mutual animosity between the two competitors.

http://www.globalpost.com/notebook/middle-east/091028/the-uae-probably-wont-host-the-americas-cup-after-all