LVT: Match Race Observers are Top Womens Match Racers

Four top international women's matchers are on board each of the boats as 'umpire observers'


Umpire observer on the back of an AC boat. Image copyright Louis Vuitton Trophy.

by Chloe Daycard

In addition to the sailing team on the ACV5 boats being used at the Louis Vuitton Trophy Nice Côte d’Azur, there is often an ‘18th man’, a VIP guest passenger on board who stands near the back of the boat and is able to get a unique close-up perspective of the racing. But for the first time at this regatta, at the back of each of the boats is also a young woman...

With women’s match racing becoming an Olympic discipline for London 2012, so the umpire team, led by Bill Edgerton, decided to invite down to Nice four of the world’s top women match racers, placing them on board the boats during racing to act as the on the water umpires’ on board observers. This would help the umpires make their rulings, help the women learn about how the rulings are made and provide each sailing team with a link to the jury - effectively a win-win-win for all involved.

The lucky four in Nice this week, each hooked up to the umpire team via radios and earpieces, are world’s women no1 match racer from France, Claire Leroy the soon to be world no1 from the UK, Lucy MacGregor, one of her crew, Annie Lush, and also from the UK, Nicky Muller.

“I am an observer, so I help the umpires to call an overlap or no overlap and we relay some information to the competitors and if they want to ask some questions about a case then we can relay that to the umpires,” explains Claire Leroy. They also keep an eye on the instruments on board and can call this data through to the umpires if it is required – she gives the example of the angles on a downwind leg.

“It is really interesting for us to see how they communicate together and it is interesting to watch the cases too. I’ve learned a lot of things,” continues Leroy.

For LeRoy it is also her first time on an ACC v5, as used in the America’s Cup two years ago in Valencia. Today she was on ITA99. Compared to the smaller production boats she is used to racing at match racing events around the world, the sailboats being used at the Louis Vuitton Trophy are monsters.

“They are so different to the boats I am used to,” admits Leroy. “I was ready for it, but it was still cool. The noise is incredible and when you have waves there is all this vibration. It is interesting. It is not a small boat, so you have to anticipate more. You have to manage every discipline of the sailing, so it is good.”

LeRoy is also impressed by the teams themselves. Generally she sails with four, or six maximum. ACC boats require 17 people to sail them. This afternoon she was on with TEAMORIGIN. “It is interesting to watch how they do it. I was with them when they beat Oracle and every time they make good tacks, everything was avery calm. They can anticipate a lot. It was interesting.”

Louis Vuitton Trophy