Vatican envoy brings offer of spiritual help to sailors

By NATASHA HARRIS

A Vatican priest in Auckland to tend to the welfare of America's Cup sailors says life and the Christian faith should not stop for crews just because they are yacht racing.

Father Gerard Tronche, head of the Vatican's maritime section, is one of two envoys who are in Auckland to find out how some of the world's best sailors can be provided with spiritual help.

At least one America's Cup skipper thinks Father Tronche has a task ahead of him.

"I hope they're sending them here for a long time," said Oracle BMW Racing skipper Chris Dickson. "They've got some work to do."

Father Tronche began his mission yesterday. He said the church had information on commercial fishermen, but had no statistics on how racing sailors coped with their lifestyle.

"We want local churches to be aware of the sailors and for the sailors to know that the church is there for them.

"We want the church to offer the same hospitality as they do to other seafarers."

Father Tronche heads the church's Apostleship of the Sea, which has offered religious support to merchant and military seamen since 1922.

Over the next two weeks he will be getting statistics on how many families come to events such as the America's Cup to support sailors.

"We want to find out how many people sail, how many families come with sailors and what support do they expect from places they go.

"There were 430 children at the Louis Vuitton Christmas party and 110 of Oracle's crew members came with family. Alinghi's crew brought 70 children.

"The fact that so many children and partners are coming over creates a special problem with things like education.

"Life doesn't stop for these sailors and neither does their Christian life."

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