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Quote - Unquote: Sorry spectacle?

Posted 1 year, 2 months ago

Quote - Unquote: Sorry spectacle?
Two letters of note from this morning's Scuttlebutt Europe: * From Stephen A. Van Dyck re: the conspicuous absence of the Kiwis at the America's Cup victory press conference. While there has always been controversy surrounding the cup it has been largely surrounding event conditions and management issues. The respect that the sailors have shown for each other over the years since 1958 has been noteworthy. Take for example the moniker "Gentleman Jim" Hardy, with whom Bill Ficker and I shared the 1970 AC press conference. He did not win the cup, but he won a lifetime of respect from sailors everywhere. Or take the example of Dennis Conner bravely showing up at the press conference to congratulate the Aussies when they lifted the Cup in 1983. And so when Mr. Bertarelli gracelessly implied that the losers could have a (their own) press conference perhaps he did not realize that they in fact were?.since in fact Mr. Bertarelli is the loser, and because of it the Old Mug has a little less luster. * From Guido Novelli: Ah, the triumph of ego over professionalism (and common courtesy). A quick note to Mr. Bertarelli: making billions selling nuns' urine doesn't automatically make you a media genius. As much as it pains me to say it, in the world of big event sports, the America's Cup is a minor player. The Super Bowl and World Cup, any Formula 1 race, have far greater viewership, yet you would NEVER have a team forbidding it's leaders/stars to not give interviews to the media immediately preceeding the event as did Alinghi. Other than some bizarre sense of aloofness, superstition or crushing ego, what could possibly be the reason to keep professional journalists, and their readers, away from the team? Nor in any world level event would you have had the sorry spectacle of the losing team excluded from the final press conference. That's just amateur hour. Little wonder Louis Vuitton is unhappy. Arrogance and ignorance are a very bad combination. Full Story »

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