Asian yacht teams line up for America's Cup

HONG KONG — Asia made its first foray into the America's Cup in 1992, when then regional powerhouse Japan made a convincing debut in an event dominated for decades by the United States.Now China and South Korea are taking the helm as the region's challengers for the 34th edition of the oldest trophy in international sport, in a sign of Asia's growing passion for all things yachting.Having already competed in the 33rd edition of the America's Cup in 2007, China will be hoping to improve on their last performance when the catamaran race is held in San Francisco in 2013.China, which has in recent years seen marinas springing up along its southern coast especially, is also contesting the Volvo Ocean Race for the first time this year, starting in Alicante, Spain, in October.Their Team Sanya is being supported by the southern island of Hainan, which features on the round-the-world course.Team Korea also figures among the eight challengers so far named for the America's Cup, the first South Korean boat ever to enter the race.As in 2007, the Chinese challenge is headed by financier Wang Chao-Yong, 46."Since the beginning, the Cup has been a kind of dream for him, he has a vision", says Thierry Barot, the French CEO of China Team, himself a Cup veteran and semi-finalist of the Louis Vuitton Cup in 1987 in Perth, Australia."We very quickly won support from the Chinese authorities," Barot told AFP."Sailing is rapidly developing in China, and after China won three medals in yachting at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, it became an event considered as a potentially rich source of medals and therefore it had to be supported."We started out with a draft budget of 35 million euros, which may be reduced because costs are lower in China," adds Barot, whose experience with multihulls includes a win in The Race in 2000 in the catamaran "Club Med".China Team, which will also take part in August in the first stage of the America's Cup World Series in Cascais, Portugal, has signed up Australian Tornado specialist Mitch Booth as its s

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