Yachting: Fischer builds around young skipper

By Suzanne McFadden

The old sea dog of America's Cup sailing, Syd Fischer, took teenage skipper James Spithill under his wing when he saw the boy was not a "petulant, spoilt brat."

Two years later, 71-year-old Fischer created an America's Cup dream around Spithill - the youngest skipper in cup history.

Today, Spithill, now 20, takes a crew of 16 young sailors who have never been near the Auld Mug out on Sydney Harbour in their cup boat, AUS29.

In three weeks they will sharing the Hauraki Gulf with names they have read in books and faces they have seen on television.

Fischer has huge faith in Spithill leading the youngest cup crew ever. Although Fischer, a five-time cup veteran, has no hopes of winning this America's Cup, he believes Spithill could be a future cup legend.

"He's a 20-year-old with a 40-year-old head. He's cool," said Fischer.

"I met him when he was still at school. I remember thinking, this is a kid who's really with it. He's not some petulant, spoilt brat. He's just a good ordinary Aussie - a bit like a Kiwi, I guess."

Spithill left school in Sydney's Northern Beaches to work for Fischer, sailing and maintaining Fischer's famous racing yacht Ragamuffin.

Says Spithill's father Arthur: "People would say to me: 'What's James doing now?' Other kids were off to be accountants and lawyers, and so we called him an 'apprentice sailor.'

"Syd was the master, James was the apprentice. He really wanted to do it. I went through the whole university caper and wasted half my life there, so I'm happy that he's doing this."

Arthur Spithill chuckles over a photo of his son, taken five years ago, when he was still sailing a tiny Optimist-like dinghy.

"James said when he was nine that he wanted to be in the America's Cup. I never doubted that he would - but then I never expected it to be this early."

Team New Zealand's Russell Coutts is another skipper who has been impressed with the young Spithill, the world youth matchracing champion.

"He's a great young kid - I met him at a conference in Sydney. He's quite similar to our Cameron Appleton - he's got that vision of the future, he's there to learn and he's a very promising sailor," said Coutts.

"If Young Australia get through this and learn from it, they could be a force in future cups."

Fischer named the Young Australia crew this week, after a month of trials, coming up with a band aged between 18 and 25.

They are neatly scattered across Australia - five from New South Wales, four from Western Australia, three from Victoria, two from Queensland and one each from South Australia and Tasmania. None have cup experience.

For now they are all staying together at one of Fischer's hotels, the Gazebo, in downtown Sydney. They go to the gym as a pack each morning, have breakfast in the hotel restaurant and then go down and work on the boat.

"I've been out on the boat with them," Fischer said. "They're throwing the boat around nicely. It will be good experience for them. We don't expect to win, but we'll take a few races.

"You New Zealanders will be the seniors, and we'll be the juniors - for once."

Arthur Spithill, who has been involved in youth sailing in Australia for 10 years, said he had "never seen anything like it."

"I was seriously moved when I went down there and watched the guys training. You have to be there to understand it," he said.

"The enthusiasm of these young guys is incredible. It's the most amazing thing that's happened in Australian youth sailing."