Britain's Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, is greeted by Olympic sailor, Ben Ainslie (L), as she arrives to view an America's Cup boat and to meet supporters of a bid to launch a British Team for the America's Cup, at the National Maritime Museum in London Tuesday. — Reuters LONDON — Sailor Ben Ainslie will lead an 80 million pound ($134 million) British challenge for the 35th America's Cup in 2017, aiming to return sport's oldest trophy to his country for the first time. The four-time Olympic gold medalist helped inspire one of the great sporting comebacks last year when Oracle Team USA rallied from 8-1 down to defeat Emirates Team New Zealand 9-8 and land the trophy. The 37-year-old has now set his sights on a British challenge, seeking to lead his country to a first win since the competition began in 1851. The venue for the 2017 regatta has yet to be confirmed, but new protocols, including nationality requirements, have been negotiated by software billionaire Larry Ellison, owner of Oracle, and Team Australia's Hamilton Island Yacht Club, the Challenger of Record. Ainslie insisted the racing should take place in San Francisco, venue of last year's regatta. “It's perfect for the foil boats and you can almost guarantee conditions.” “It's a huge challenge, there's no doubt about it,” Ainslie told reporters at the launch by the river Thames in south London. “Taking on Larry Ellison and the team is a massive challenge, no question about it,” he added. There has long been speculation that Ainslie planned to lead an America's Cup challenge but he had been awaiting the protocols or guidelines and also putting together the funding and crew. Telecoms entrepreneur Charles Dunstone said 40 percent of the budget would come from wealthy individuals. “We needed to form a team before we stand credibly before you today,” said Dunstone, chairman and founding shareholder of the Ben Ainslie racing team. BAR board member and one of the founding investors Keith Mills said they would be targeting large British multinational companies, and a naming rights sponsor, but said it was not crucial that they had everything in place before the Aug 8 entry deadline. “We've had some really goods positive responses, if we have two or three companies (tendering) it would be perfect. At the moment it's bilateral.” Among the new protocols, the next Cup will be sailed with a similar but smaller version of the 72-foot, wing-sail catamarans used in 2013. The new 62-foot boats, called AC62s, will be crewed by eight people, three fewer than last year. — Reuters
