Coutts 'battling to leave Alinghi'

By JULIE ASH

New Zealand America's Cup winner Russell Coutts is believed to be about to quit Alinghi.

Two websites have this week reported that the relationship between Coutts and Ernesto Bertarelli's syndicate has ended.

The Italian website Farevela claimed Alinghi and Coutts would be "divorcing" and a press conference would be held next week to "officialise the news".

The Sailing Anarchy website reported that "Coutts' lawyers are battling to get him out of his contract with Alinghi, but Alinghi are not letting him go without a fight".

The website reports that Coutts probably won't be able to get out of the contract but will not sail for the syndicate in the next cup, which raises the question of what will happen to the other key New Zealanders in the team, Brad Butterworth, Murray Jones, Dean Phipps, Simon Daubney and Warwick Fleury.

Adding fuel to the speculation is that the Swiss syndicate have just launched their 2007 campaign and none of the New Zealanders feature in the opening page of their website which zooms in on the team's afterguard.

Considering Coutts is the ISAF world sailor of the year and Butterworth has just been inducted into the America's Cup Hall of Fame, many have been puzzled by the syndicate's decision not to flaunt two of their best sailors.

It is understood Coutts is in Switzerland but plans to join his team in Rhode Island over the next few days for the UBS regatta.

Rumours of Coutts' unhappiness at Alinghi started late last year when it was revealed he and Butterworth were not impressed with some decisions made by America's Cup Management, the body headed by former Alinghi director Michel Bonnefous, set to run the next event.

Since the last cup, positions within Alinghi have been reshuffled. Coutts maintains his role as a team leader but shares the skipper/helmsman's role with Jochen Schuemann and former Oracle sailor Peter Holmberg.

Further reading: nzherald.co.nz/americascup