Australia II
The Australia II, is a 12-metre class yacht (KA6), and the first non-American yacht to win the prestigious America's Cup, in the 132-year history of the race, in the ocean off Newport, Rhode Island on 25 September 1983.
Controversy
During the contest, the American syndicate led by captain Dennis Conner, sailing the 12-metre Liberty, took the Australian team captained by John Bertrand, and financed by Alan Bond to court, over the design origin and legality of the use of the yacht's 'winged keel'. Under the New York Yacht Club sailing rules, '... a yacht should be designed by residents or citizens of the nation it represents'. The case by the NYYC was subsequently dismissed by the courts, before the finals race, and the Australians recovered from a bad start to win the America's Cup 4-3 in a best-of-seven format. The Australian media subsequently branded the NYYC as 'sore losers'.
In 2009, a Dutch marine architect Peter van Oossanen, claimed that the winged keel was not designed by chief Australian architect Ben Lexcen, as previously believed, but rather a group of contracted Dutch designers based in The Netherlands.[1] Oossanen has also stated that Bond had paid him AU$25,000 not to say anything to the public at the time.[2]