New Zealand replacing part of boat’s hull after it was dropped by crane on 1st day of America’s Cup

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Emirates Team New Zealand says it has had to remove a piece of the hull of its boat that was damaged in a crane incident after the opening race of its America’s Cup title defense.

The mishap happened late on Thursday when the 75-foot Taihoro yacht was being removed from the water after racing.

Team leader Grant Dalton said the multimillion-dollar boat fell some six meters (20 feet) onto the support cradle on their team base inside Barcelona’s old port. Dalton said the impact sounded “like a bomb went off.” He and skipper Peter Burling inspected the boat after a crew had lifted the tips of its critically important hydrofoils off the concrete ground.

“There is some structural damage aft in the boat, but the main force was taken on the forward cradle splash,” Dalton said in a statement released on Friday. “Overnight this area has been removed (in other words we have cut the piece out of the hull bottom) and the repair has started which means building a new piece of boat.

“It is too early at this stage to say when we will be sailing again but I have seen these guys work miracles before.”

Dalton said Thursday that the repair job could keep his team sidelined throughout the double round-robin phase that lasts through next week. That would be a setback, but it would be manageable if the boat can be refitted in the coming days or even weeks since as defending champions the Kiwis are guaranteed a spot in the finals held in October.

The incident means that New Zealand won’t participate in the two races it was scheduled for Friday. That won’t impact the standings since its races don’t count; they are essentially only for practice to keep the team sharp for the final.

The other two races that do count will see INEOS Britannia face France’s Orient Express Racing Team and Italy’s Luna Rossa Prada Perilli take on NYYC American Magic.

One of the five challengers, which also include Swiss team Alinghi Red Bull Racing, will be eliminated after the opening phase before the final four enter a two-round playoff series.

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