9 Mar 2010

First up win for Team NZ

6:56 pm on 9 March 2010

Team New Zealand's easily beaten the Swedish yacht Artemis in the third race in first round robin at the Louis Vuitton regatta after calm conditions delayed the start on Auckland's Waitemata harbour until mid afternoon,

Dean Barker and his crew made the most of their local knowledge to make big gains in the light, shifty conditions.

The French and German-crewed All4One, started with a win over Mascalzone-Latino while another Italian yacht Azzura beat Britain's Team Origin.

The Auckland round of the five-regatta series is the first since BMW Oracle won the America's Cup from defender Alinghi - ending the bitter legal struggle between the pair which had sent other teams into hibernation.

Last year, Team New Zealand contested only the final, beating Alinghi.