- James Spithill
James Spithill (born
june 28 1979 ) is anAustralia nyachtsman . He was born inSydney .After some junior
match race titles, in 1998 he arrived third in theSydney-Hobart and first in theKenwood Cup .He confirmed his ability by winning numerous races in the following years, including twice the
Nations Cup dn (2003 and 2004), and obtaining a second place in the 2003 Match Race World Championship. In 2005 he was Match Race World Champion.America's Cup
He debuted in the
America's Cup in 2000 with "Young Australia ", showing his precocious talent despite leading an antiquated boat. At the age of 20, he was the youngest helmsman in the America's Cup.In
2003 he led "OneWorld " in the America's Cup, reaching the Semi-final of theLouis Vuitton Cup , where he was beaten byOracle BMW Racing . Spithill was next chosen by Francesco De Angelis, whom he had beaten in the 2003 Louis Vuitton Quarter-finals, as his heir as helmsman ofLuna Rossa Challenge in the2007 America's Cup . Spitihill was a mainstay of the team, which he led to the final of theLouis Vuitton Cup 2007 after beating one of the favourites,Oracle BMW Racing , 5-1 in the semifinals.He earned the nickname of "James Pitbull" among italian fans because of his aggressive tacticts during the pre-start phase of the races. He is the main protagonist of what is arguably remembered as the greatest pre-start in the history of the America's Cup, forcing two penalties to BMW Oracle skipper Chris Dickson in race 5 of the
Louis Vuitton Cup 2007 causing Dickson's resignation a few days later.Spithill went on to lose 5 - 0 to Emirates Team New Zealand in the 2007 Louis Vuitton Cup final.
References
* [http://americascup.tiscali.it/feed/news/2007/05/10/gdv/gdvc2007-05-10_1459.html Italian page about America's Cup] it icon
* [http://bymnews.com/may/james-spithill.html Article about James Spithill]
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