America's Cup legend - Australia II

In the build-up to the America's Cup Jubilee John Roberson looks back at the greatest moment in the Cup's history - Australia II's 1983 victory

Few of us who watched Australia II cross the finishing line of the seventh race of the 1983 America's Cup off Newport, Rhode Island, realised at the time just how big this occasion was. Yes, we knew it was big, we knew that the longest winning streak in sporting history had just been broken, after 132 years the New York Yacht Club had lost the America's Cup, but just how big in global terms, we didn't comprehend at the time.

The whole nation of Australia had come to a standstill, and everywhere in the world where there was an Austrailian community, was in a state of total celebratory disbelief. It became evident that even the crew of Australia II was in a state of shock at what they'd achieved, probably almost as shocked as the crew of Liberty, and among Australians the world over, underneath the wild, joyous celebrations was a sort of anxious knot in the stomach, a sort of national question, "what the hell do we do now?"

The people of the United States of America had rarely taken any notice of this quirky yacht race, that happened every now and then, and that they seemed to keep winning with ease. Then suddenly the upstart Aussies were poised at 3 - 3 against Dennis 'Mr. America's Cup' Conner, to take this ugly trophy from the most powerful nation in the world. This whole enormous nation was transfixed by what their media was headlining as 'the race of the century', the seventh and deciding race for their America's Cup.

But it wasn't just the two competing countries that were tuning into their televisions and radio stations. Around the westernized world there seemed to be a curiousity as to whether the men from Down Under could really beat the might of America. These guys from the island continent had designed a weird boat with, reportedly, a winged keel, which they refused to show anyone. They had not only got a faster boat than the Americans, but had got the defenders on the back foot, psychologically.

The tension in Newport was palpable, the series had dragged on for longer than any previous Cup match, because of delays due to lack of wind, and strategically called lay-days. However, within the microcosm that is the America's Cup community, it was difficult even for members of the media to grasp just how intensely the world spotlight was shining on this drama.

Anyway, at the penultimate mark of the course it looked as if history was going to repeat itself: Dennis Conner's red boat, Liberty was leading Australia II with just two legs of the course to go. Australians the world over were weeping into their Fosters, and the committee of the New York Yacht Club was starting to show signs of a smug grin on its collective face.

Then the seemingly impossible happened. About two thirds of the way down the run, Australia II and Liberty were on a converging course, and it appeared that the challenger had closed the gap. As the world watched, it became evident that the Aussies hadn't just caught up, they seemed to have drawn level, though from water level it was hard to tell. A hush of disbelief developed as the helicopter television cameras showed the white hulled boat, with its green and gold spinnaker pass in front of the red boat flying the all-white spinnaker.

How a contest that is played out in such slow motion as a race between two 12 Metres, sailing at about 7 knots, could have millions of people around the world, on the edge of their seats, defies logic, but that was the situation as the American crew of Liberty threw tack after tack at the Aussies on Australia II. Conner's head was on the block, and the guillotine was poised to drop. John Bertrand was the executioner.

The outcome is history, and the world went wild.

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