What does CHN95 remind you of?

To tell you the truth my New Zealand’s friends told me three months ago that the boat that most ressembled theirs is, in fact, the CHN95.

But three months ago the boat was still at the chandlers in Dong Guan?

Yes I know, but they seemed to know what they were talking about! And I share their opinion, although I’m not an architect I have a good eye, so yes, I agree with them on this one. I admire the result and the fact that this boat is certainly up there with the best of the 3rd generation boats. It may even go one further. I recently attended the inauguration of the new Luna Rossa boat and I can see the same characteristics in the CHN95. They are a bit like shoe boxes: vertical sides and flat sterns. Without an intermediary stage the CHN95 is in fact a boat which belongs to the ultimate “rich” generation. As far as I’m concerned, certain aspects, even though there are of course other elements to consider, are more modern than the Spanish boat for example.

In order to win the Cup you need a good boat. Do you think the CHN95 is that kind of boat?

In my opinion, yes. It has potential to be competitive.

How do you see the 32nd America’s Cup unfolding?

I think all the boats in the competition are pretty much alike. I also believe that the matchs are going to be very tight, more than they have ever been in fact.

You often say that the Cup changes the men who participate. In what way?

It is a huge lesson in humility. Bich never once won the Cup, Bond took 13 years to win it, Lipton never won either in 30 years of competing. Each time you learn incredible lessons just by being part of it all. The America’s Cup is like a duel, the most basic and purest of all sports. Either you survive or you die. It is an incredibly violent experience. I know all about it, I lived through it. In 1983 we didn’t have a penny, we lived on hamburgers. The Cup is about drinking down to the last dregs of the whole experience. It isn’t just a match that you win or lose. It is entire series of matchs, which as a general rule, you lose (Bertarelli being the exception). It’s always the same story that repeats itself over and over again. The search for the impossible.

What are the qualities that you personally most admire in a person?

Is this to do with the Cup by any chance?

Well yes, indirectly...

Enthusiasm and a passion for living in general.

Source: CHINA TEAM/Remi Villard