Call them, if you like, emotions. They are what Matteo de Nora felt when Emirates Team New Zealand crossed the finish line of the ninth race ahead of Ineos Britannia, thus securing victory in the 37th edition of the America’s Cup. A triumph loaded with meanings not only sporting but also, and above all, human. Yes, because if it is true that the America’s Cup seen in the waters of Barcelona looks more and more like Formula 1, where the role of technology has become more and more predominant, it is equally true that the tears of joy and the enthusiasm shown by the Kiwi crew confirm once again that the added value to every feat, including sporting ones, is still the human factor. A story in which Matteo de Nora played a central role. In the only interview given in the aftermath of Emirates Team New Zealand’s victory, the Team Principal takes stock of the last 21 years, that is to say since 2003, after the defeat suffered in his home waters by Alinghi, when he entered the scene to revive the enthusiasm and the fortunes of Kiwi sailing in the history of this competition. An intense journey in which there has been no lack of difficult moments such as the one experienced in 2013 in San Francisco, when victory escaped at the last race after an epic comeback by the American defender. But it has also been full of satisfactions, above all the record of being the only nation, with the exception of the United States, to win three consecutive editions of the America’s Cup. Three victories each with a special meaning: ‘For the first one, after two defeats, it was a relief. You say to yourself: good, I did what was asked of me. The second, you become aware that, starting from scratch, you have built something. The third, you are more serene: you know that you cannot always win and it becomes more important to leave your mark. That’s how the hydrogen and the youth and women’s events, which are the most beautiful memory of this Cup, were born. Because they are necessary for its future. You can no longer improvise,’ said de Nora. A future that necessarily passes through an awareness of sustainability. In de Nora’s vision, the America’s Cup can also play its part by becoming not only a sporting competition, but also an important showcase for the innovations that can be applied in the nautical field. Starting with hydrogen propulsion, a front that has seen the involvement of Bluegame. Not only has the yard built two chase boats for the American Magic and Orient-Express teams, but building on this experience it will soon present the BGH-HSV, a range of boats equipped with hybrid propulsion foils, on the market. Here too, nothing is coincidental. This is an important milestone that forms part of the ‘Road to 2030’ manifesto, the strategic plan conceived by Massimo Perotti who, together with Bluegame, Sanlorenzo and Nautor Swan, has set himself the objective of anticipating and guiding the path towards carbon neutrality in the nautical sector. As with de Nora, this is yet another step, as Perotti himself tells us in an interview with Top Yacht Design, along a path marked not only by successes, culminating with the listing on the stock exchange, but by a deep passion that gives a unique meaning to each goal.
Matteo Zaccagnino
