Changing back to Örn

After a disappointing result in their home country, Victory Challenge will be swapping boats for Trapani

The result of the Malmö-Skåne Louis Vuitton Acts 6 & 7 is a disappointment for Victory Challenge, as Magnus Holmberg, skipper and helmsman, admits.

At the same time he announces that the team has taken the decision not to sail Orm (SWE 73), but rather to change back to Örn (SWE 63), which was successful in the races earlier this year in Valencia, for the Trapani Louis Vuitton Acts 8 & 9.

"We know that we have work to do on both starts and crew work, especially in harder winds," said Holmberg. "That we're now choosing Örn for Trapani is because we're not happy with Orm's speed on the water during the races in Malmö. We think we know what needs to be done on Orm and will be making further modifications to Orm ahead of the two-boat training that will begin in Valencia at the end of October, when this year's regattas are over..

"With these extra modifications we hope to be able to achieve the same speed on the water or even more than we can get from Örn. We know from Auckland that Orm is the faster boat, but we have modified both of the boats according to the new class rules, with a one-ton lighter bulb and more sail area, and the boats have reacted differently to the modifications."

A seventh place in the overall results after the Malmö races was not what Victory Challenge had been hoping for. "But at the same time using Orm has been necessary for the long-term development of Victory Challenge," continues Holmberg. "If we hadn't used Orm we would never have got the answers we now have that are also important in the building of the two new boats ahead of the Louis Vuitton Cup 2007. To say that it was a mistake to use Orm and not Örn is to make it too simple."

Holmberg concludes: "Even if I'm disappointed in our results I'm extremely satisfied with the races in Malmö. They've been absolutely fantastic. What Malmö has achieved is unbelievable. The support that we've had out on the water, even when it's gone badly for us in the races, has been enormous fun. For us and our future it's meant a lot that these races have taken place in Sweden. It's really the first time that we've sailed at home since we started Victory Challenge."

The change of boat for Trapani means that Örn, which remained in Valencia during the Malmö races, must now be transported to Trapani by Victory Challenge. According to the original plan all the teams will use the same boats in Trapani as they have done in Malmö - they will all be transported there on the same ship.

This also means that the planned training with Örn in Valencia in the time between Malmö and Trapani has to be cancelled. Instead, Victory Challenge's crew will travel to Trapani, which is in Sicily, Italy, earlier than originally planned.