Alinghi is the syndicate set up by Ernesto Bertarelli, racing under the colors of the Société Nautique de Genève, to challenge for the America’s Cup, as well as other competitions. Bertarelli had raced several smaller yachts named Alinghi previously, but 2003 was his first attempt at the America’s Cup. Alinghi challenged for and won the 2003 America’s Cup in AucklandNew Zealand and successfully defended it at the 2007 America’s Cup in Valencia, Spain. Alinghi lost the America’s Cup to the Golden Gate Yacht Club and their team BMW Oracle Racing in a Deed of Gift match in Valencia, Spain in February 2010. For the 2003 event, Team New Zealand as the holder of the America’s Cup, in consultation with Prada, the Challenger of Record, removed the nationality rule that stipulated that all of the crew members must be nationals of the challenging syndicate. read more…
Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a country situated in the confluence of Western, Central, and SouthernEurope. It is a federal republic composed of 26 cantons, with federal authorities based in Bern. Switzerland is a landlocked country bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. It is geographically divided among the Swiss Plateau, the Alps, and the Jura, spanning a total area of 41,285 km² (15,940 sq mi), and land area of 39,997 km² (15,443 sq mi). While the Alps occupy the greater part of the territory, the Swiss population of approximately 8.5 million is concentrated mostly on the plateau, where the largest cities and economic centres are located, among them Zürich, Geneva and Basel, where multiple international organisations are domiciled (such as FIFA, the UN‘s second-largest Office, and the Bank for International Settlements) and where the main international airports of Switzerland are. read more…
Château-d’Œx is a municipality in the canton of Vaud in Switzerland. It is in the district of Riviera-Pays-d’Enhaut. Château-d’Œx is a small village of approximately 3,500 inhabitants in the French-speaking part of Switzerland. In recent years, Château-d’Œx has become increasingly popular among travelers primarily for the village’s incredibly authentic Swiss alpine feel, stunning natural surroundings, and quiet atmosphere. read more…
Kiteboarding is a surface water sport combining aspects of wakeboarding, snowboarding, windsurfing, surfing, paragliding, skateboarding and sailing into one extreme sport. A kiteboarder harnesses the power of the wind with a large controllable power kite to be propelled across the water on a kiteboard similar to a wakeboard or a small surfboard, with or without footstraps or bindings. Kitesurfing is a style of kiteboarding specific to wave riding, which uses standard surfboards or boards shaped specifically for the purpose. There are different styles of kiteboarding, including freestyle, freeride, downwinders, speed, course racing, wakestyle, jumping and kitesurfing in the waves. In 2012, the number of kitesurfers was estimated by the World Sailing and International Kiteboarding Association at 1.5 million persons worldwide. read more…
