Peter Burling named helmsman, replacing Dean Barker

Emirates Team New Zealand announced major changes after a week of turmoil in their national media. After word leaked on February 18 that Dean Barker was to be moved aside as helmsman in favor of 24 year old Peter Burling, Barker claimed that he got the news from a radio talk show host’s Facebook page, a claim that team boss Grant Dalton disputed. The bitter tone quickly escalated. After several days of headline news and interviews, the team confirmed the changes in an announcement on February 26, saying that Burling would helm and Australian Glenn Ashby would take on the role of Sailing Director. Ashby was the wing trimmer for ETNZ in the 2013 America’s Cup. He is a multiple world and Australian champion in three catamaran classes and a highly regarded multihull specialist.  Burling, with crew Blair Tuke, was the silver medalist in the 49er in the 2012 London Olympics, behind Artemis Racing’s Nathan Outeridge and Iain Jensen. Burling is the current world champion in both the foiling Moth and, with Tuke, in the 49er. Barker has said in interviews that he is “gutted” by the way the news was handled. He has told journalists he is only interested in the Sailing Director post and that he does not want to be Performance Coach.

December 2, 2014 – “It’s Bermuda – no surprise and we’re happy.”
February 26, 2015 – “… a serious impact … reducing the budget by $20 million”

In a radio interview, team boss Grant Dalton said, “The world changed when Bermuda was announced for us. We were faced  making significant budget cuts to cut our cloth around a place which is commercially way less viable.” In their February 26 announcement, the team stated, “It should be noted that the announcement of Bermuda as the venue for the next America’s Cup series had a serious impact on the team’s finances and sponsorship funding, reducing the budget by some $20 million.”

This is a dramatic turnaround from the team’s headline on their website on December 2: “It’s Bermuda – no surprise and we’re happy.” That ETNZ article reported, “Dalton said that Bermuda’s selection ahead of San Diego would not be a serious setback for the team.” The ETNZ website quoted Dalton saying, “We have solid support from our sponsors and we have every expectation of being able to mount a credible challenge in Bermuda.”

Further complicating ETNZ’s situation is the question of funding from the New Zealand government. Economic Development Minister Steven Joyce has so far declined to confirm the sponsorship, but stated that if New Zealand were to be named as the venue for the America’s Cup Qualifiers (the round robin phase of challenger selection), “that would make us much more interested in sponsoring the team”. Mr Joyce said as soon as ACEA names the venue the Government will announce its plans. ACEA has said the announcement will come in early March.