By a boatlength

Robert Hughes' Heartbreaker wins the Canada Cup match racing competition in Toronto

In the most dramatic finish ever seen in Canada's Cup competition, U.S. Challenger Robert Hughes and Heartbreaker came from behind on the final leg of the final match race on Monday to cross the finish line less than half a boatlength ahead of Defending team Honour. The win brought the final score of the championship to 5-4 and finally gave Hughes the victory that has eluded him in two prior Cup challenges in 2001 and 2003.

The massive silver trophy is one of the oldest in sailing, and shares more than looks with her better-known sister, America’s Cup. Both are named after the original racing yacht that first defended them - the Royal Canadian Yacht Club Canada won the first-ever match in 1896 on the waters of Lake Erie. Conceived as a tool to help “encourage the building of larger fleets by fostering class racing” on the Great Lakes, the Canada’s Cup is one of the most prestigious sailing trophy in the United States today. The RCYC took the Cup away from the US in 2001, when Olympian Terry McLaughlin beat Bob Hughes by the tiniest of margins after five days of racing. In 2003 Hughes, representing Lake Michigan’s Macatawa Bay Yacht Club, came up short in Toronto, again losing by a narrow margin to McLaughlin. Hughes’ and new partner Ted Etheridge returned for a third attempt in 7 years, and they are hoping that the third time’s a charm. “I can’t focus on the past, but I can learn from it.” Hughes said prior to racing starting on Thursday. “In 2001 and 2003 we were so close, and my own errors were a big part of our defeat. Team Heartbreaker has worked incredibly hard over the past year to bring our game to a new level, and hopefully, I won’t mess it up.”

Team Heartbreaker could not contain their enthusiasm as they loaded the Cup into their inflatable tender, racing from the Royal Canadian Yacht Club's island headquarters to the mainland, hoping to catch their flights back to Michigan. "We can't wait to bring the Cup to her new home at Macatawa Bay Yacht Club," said Team Manager Mary DeVries. "This means so much to us, we've all been brought along by Bob Hughes vision, and now we've succeeded at what he started years ago."

Extremely light winds on Monday made both races long, mentally frustrating affairs. With America's Cup tacticians Gavin Brady and Dave Dellenbaugh battling it out every bit as much as the helmsman they directed, the final margin of victory was less than 3 seconds. Honour held a 19-second lead at the final upwind mark, and only 200 yards from the finish line, Heartbreaker was still trailing. "It was one little puff," said losing skipper Alec Krstajic. "That was the match. One tiny little puff of wind that Heartbreaker brought right to the finish, the whole thing came down to that."

Hughes hopes to work with other prominent Great Lakes clubs in both the U.S. and Canada to build on the momentum of this exciting and suspenseful Canada's Cup match. With thousands of on-line spectators for IonEarth's superb GPS-based coverage, and massive interest in the 21st running of the Cup, it's clear that the interest in match racing on the Great Lakes is at an all-time high. Macatawa Bay is targeting 2009 for the next defense of the Cup.

The entire series of races will be available to view at IonEarth later this week. Races can be replayed free of charge at www.ionearth.com. More information on the event can be found here: http://www.cancuplive.com