Team Shosholoza receive divine intervention

Archbishop Desmond Tutu becomes team patron

Nobel Peace Prize laureate, Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu has accepted an invitation to be patron of Team Shosholoza, South Africa’s first ever challenger for sailing’s prestigious 156 year old America’s Cup.

Archbishop Tutu who celebrated his 75th birthday on Saturday 7 October will meet the crew of Team Shosholoza for the first time on 27 November in Cape Town when they return home from their base in Spain for a two month summer break.

An initial approach was made in January this year when Team Shosholoza were back in South Africa, but because of Archbishop Tutu’s busy global schedule a meeting was impossible to arrange. For instance between now and November he will be keeping appointments in New York, Hiroshima, Doha, The Hague, Ankara, Bochum and Brussels.

Correspondence continued when the team returned to Europe for this year’s America’s Cup precursor regattas in Valencia, but it was only this week that the November date was finally agreed on.

Team Shosholoza managing director, Captain Salvatore Sarno, said he was honoured by Archbishop Tutu’s acceptance: “I love and respect Archbishop Tutu as I love and respect Nelson Mandela. For me they represent the heart and soul of the new South Africa. It is something that we are trying to portray through Shosholoza. I am a believer and for me the Archbishop is someone very close to God. I am convinced that Team Shosholoza has the protection of God and this is why we have asked him to support us through our hurdles to the America’s Cup next year, “said Capt Sarno

Early communication with Archbishop Tutu was fairly formal via his personal assistant Lavinia Browne. But on 20 June this year, two days ahead of the start of the crucial Louis Vuitton Act 12 match racing event in Valencia, the team were surprised and delighted to receive a personal email from the Archbishop himself

Written from New York it said: “You are doing wonderfully well - you are doing South Africa proud. I am thrilled. Keep it up and best of luck over the next ten days. God bless you. Desmond Tutu Archbishop Emeritus.”

Six day’s later Team Shosholoza had won match races against United Internet Team Germany and the French Areva Challenge. Another email arrived - this time signed “Arch”.

“Yippee and Yippee again. Is this our second victory? WOW and double WOW. Much love and blessings, Arch. Patron of Shosholoza.”

But then the crunch came. The team had won a third match against China Team but needed just one more win to ensure a place among the top eight teams in the middle “silver division”. An urgent message was sent to the “Arch” explaining that they badly needed a victory over the Italian Mascalzone Latino Capitalia team who they would face the coming Wednesday.

“For this we need some heaven sent help. We so wish you were here in Valencia to say a prayer for us in person but a warm message from you will be so welcome,” the team wrote in an email to Archbishop Tutu.

Within three hours the team had a reply: “I’ll say a special prayer for you all on Wednesday. I’m in the US staying at a monastery so I certainly will have a hotline! Good luck and God bless you all, Arch.”

Shosholoza was unlucky to pick up a penalty in the pre-start of the dramatic race against Mascalzone Latino-Capitalia Team. But they lead to the first mark and extended their lead around the course to some 200 metres approaching the finish line. At that point they felt safe to do their 270° penalty turn. It was fast and perfectly executed but just gave Mascalzone the break to sneak past and win the race by a mere four seconds!
The immediate response from the "Arch" was: "I’m still using the hotline; that’s why we lost by only very small margins for a relatively inexperienced crew! Well done. Arch. Patron Shosholoza."

The result put Team Shosholoza in a three way tie with the French Areva Challenge and another Italian team, +39. Then, as luck would have it, the South African's won the tie break on the basis of their better result in the previous May Louis Vuitton Act 11.

The “hotline” had worked! The team had secured their 8th place overall and silver division placing in the 12 boat fleet. This opened up another opportunity for improving their overall standings in the semi-final play off.

By this stage Captain Sarno was including messages and references to Archbishop Tutu in his daily pre-race pep talks to the team.

As it turned out the team were unable to better their Act 12 regatta placing of 8th overall. But they felt triumphant as America’s Cup first timers to scoop 7th place overall in the 2006 America’s Cup Class Season Championship which took into account the results of all three Louis Vuitton Acts this year.

Archbishop Tutu’s response was: “I will stay longer in the monastery next year. What a fabulous result. Well done all of you. God bless you always, Arch. Patron:Shosholoza!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!Yippee!!!!!!!!!!”

- A recent article in London’s Independent said: “Few people in the last century can match Archbishop Tutu as a figure of moral authority, and one who represented the best of South Africa in some very bleak times. As the architect of (South Africa’s) Truth and Reconciliation Commission - and the man who coined the “rainbow nation” to describe post apartheid South Africa – he is one of those rare dissidents whose reputation has grown since winning the argument.”

Captain Sarno’s reference to Team Shosholoza having the protection of God stems from three incidents in the team’s short two and a half year history.

- In 2004 a mini hurricane swept through the America’s Cup compound in Marseille, France, seriously damaging the campaign yachts of the Swiss Cup Defender Team Alinghi, and those of New Zealand and America - but uncannily leaving the adjacent yacht Shosholoza unscathed.
- Back home training in Table Bay in 2005 a collision with a whale might have sunk the boat but the team escaped with minor injuries , little damage to the yacht and by all accounts the whale too.
- In July 2005 yacht Shosholoza’s new 3 4 metre mast broke and crashed into the Mediterranean while the team was training – again with no casualties.

Since then Captain Sarno has invited a Spanish Bishop to bless both a second hand stand-by mast and a subsequent new mast during ceremonies attended by the whole team in Valencia’s Port America’s Cup.