[Orm in Gothenburg harbour]

(2002-07-15, Gothenburg/Auckland) On the way from Gothenburg to Auckland, Victory Challenge’s second boat Orm (SWE 73).
She left the boatyard at dawn and was loaded aboard ship in Gothenburg harbour soon afterwards.
Everything was kept very discreet.

’We are hoping to be successful in getting Orm really, really right. And we don’t want any attention or anyone overlooking us’, says Mats Johansson, Project Manager for Victory Challenge and still in Sweden precisely for the secrecy-surrounded transport of Orm as well as for freighting the Swedish America’s Cup challenge’s new tenders.
Örn (SWE 63), Victory Challenge’s first boat built for the America’s Cup that starts with the challenger series Louis Vuitton Cup on 1 October, has been sailing in Auckland’s Hauraki Gulf since mid-December last year.
Örn is recognized to be fast, especially when tacking.
But, in tank tests, Orm is even faster.
Because the boats are different, with Örn acting as a development platform for the construction of Orm, the whole process with the second boat has taken place in an atmosphere of even greater secrecy that with the first.

[Orm being loaded on board ship to take her to Auckland]

When Örn was ready – in October last year – she was named before invited guests, along with journalists and photographers, in the boatyard at Lindholmen in Gothenburg.
This time, only a chosen few has been allowed in the yard.
There has been no naming ceremony. This will take place as late at possible, in connection with the launch at the Victory Challenge base in the America’s Cup village in Auckland.
This is expected to be in mid-to-late August.
Like Örn, Orm was designed by German Frers Jr and built by Victory Challenge under the leadership of Chris Mellow.
German Frers Jr was one of Prada’s chief designers before the former Louis Vuitton Cup.
Chris Mellow had previously been part of building Team New Zealand’s Black Magic boats.
Some 20 boatbuilders from Sweden, New Zealand, Australia, England, France, and Portugal have worked on Orm for around 20,000 hours over the last 5 – 6 months.
When they were ready, she was escorted at dawn from the yard to Gothenburg harbour where she was loaded aboard the waiting cargo vessel.

[Orm safely aboard - transport can begin]

The Victory Challenge yard at Lindholmen, the place where Gothenburg’s modern shipbuilding industry began in the 19th century, is now closed. Victory Challenge built Örn and Orm in one of the old yard’s remaining workshops which was established as the Swedish America’s Cup challenge yard in 2001. This was 25 years after the shipbuilding crisis and closure of Lindholmen, in an area that has become a knowledge centre, in general.
From now on, Victory Challenge’s activities are concentrated in one place: the base at 85 Halsey Street in Auckland.
Bert Willborg/Victory Challenge

Footnote: A TV-team from TV3 Sport was allowed to cover the transport, and will contribute a feature during their sports news broadcast at 22.55 this evening.
Those who missed TV3’s latest programme in the series ”Victory Challenge: before the America’s Cup”, will have a second chance to see it on Viasat Sport at 22.30 this evening. This includes Göran Zachrisson’s conversation with Mats Johansson, and with helmsmen Jesper Bank and Magnus Holmberg as shown on TV3 Sweden last Monday and produced on Thursday 4 July. The programme will be next seen on Viasat Sport on Thursday (18 July) at 16.30.