America’s Cup, Ras al Khaimah presenta un Amicus Curiae
America's CupVela 14 Ottobre 2009 Zerogradinord 0
America’s Cup – New York – Ieri pomeriggio, i legali rappresentanti Ras al Khaimah hanno depositato un Amicus Curiae davanti ai giudici della Corte Suprema dello Stato di New Yorl in risposta alla nuova azione legale promossa dal Golden Gate Yacht Club lo scorso 1 ottobre. Il sodalizio americano sostiene infatti che l’Emirato Arabo non garantirebbe la necessaria sicurezza per consentire lo svolgimento di un edizione della Coppa America e non avrebbe le infrastrutture necessarie per ospitare un evento di tale portata.
“Ras al Khaimah è sopresa e offesa dagli attacchi che il Golden Gate Yacht Club gli ha mosso sia davanti alla Corte, sia pubblicamente, come ampiamente riportato dai media – ha spiegato il segretario particolare dello sceicco reggente, Dr. Khater Massaad – Dato che le accuse mosse a Ras al Khaimah sono false, abbiamo avvertito la necessità di presentare alla corte ampia documentazione circa il reale stato delle cose e circa l’evanzamento dei lavori in vista della 33ma America’s Cup”.
L’amministrazione di Ras al Khaimah è convinta che questo altro non sia che un tentativo di BMW Oracle Racing di disputare il match in una località che ritiene più adatta alla sua imbarcazione. Il Golden Gate Yacht Club ha mosso obiezioni che non può sostenere con i fatti davanti alla corte e ai media. Questo dipende dal fatto che gli Emirati Arabi Uniti hanno dimostrato grande impegno nello sviluppo dello sport della vela e ospitano ogni anno un gran numero di eventi velici
EMIRATES FILES AMICUS BRIEF OVER SUITABILITY TO HOST AMERICA’S CUP
[Source Ras Al-Khaimah] Today, the Emirate of Ras Al Khaimah (RAK), one of the seven United Arab Emirates (UAE), filed an amicus curiae brief defending its suitability to hold the 33rd installment of the America’s Cup sailing competition in February 2010. The submission is in response to a meritless motion filed on October 1, 2009 in New York State Supreme Court by the Golden Gate Yacht Club alleging that the emirate lacks necessary infrastructure for such an event and cannot guarantee the safety of the crew of the Golden Gate Yacht Club representative team, BMW Oracle Racing.
“Ras Al Khaimah is surprised and offended by Golden Gate Yacht Club’s attacks both in this litigation and publicly, which have been widely reported,” stated Dr. Khater Massaad, CEO of the Ras Al Khaimah Investment Authority. “Because these accusations about Ras Al Khaimah are untrue and unfair, we felt it was necessary for us to present the court with a full and accurate picture of the safety and security of Ras Al Khaimah. We also felt compelled to inform the court about the numerous infrastructure improvements Ras Al Khaimah has undertaken in preparation for the America’s Cup and defend our international reputation,” he added.
Ras Al Khaimah believes this is a veiled attempt by the Golden Gate Yacht Club and its principal sponsor, Oracle CEO Larry Ellison to have the event moved to a venue that they perceive better suits the BMW Oracle Racing yacht. Golden Gate Yacht Club has made statements to the court and the media that cannot be substantiated with facts. This comes despite the fact that the UAE has demonstrated a commitment to the development of the sport of sailing and has hosted a number of international sailing events.
In Ras Al Khaimah’s amicus brief and Dr. Massaad’s supporting affirmation, Ras Al Khaimah systematically addresses the baseless charges that Ras Al Khaimah and by extension, the United Arab Emirates, are unsafe. The UAE maintains one of the lowest crime rates in the world, hosts more than 10 million visitors a year and is home to approximately 180,000 US nationals. In fact, Oracle’s Middle East headquarters are located within a 45 minute drive of the America’s Cup venue and BMW Oracle Racing is scheduled to compete in the Dubai RC44 Gold Cup next month.
UAE has successfully hosted numerous high profile international events, including the Dubai World Cup (the world’s richest horse race with a $6 million purse this year), the Dubai World Golf Championship featuring Tiger Woods, the World Tennis Championship featuring Roger Federer and the Rugby Sevens World Cup. In the coming year the UAE will host the Abu Dhabi Formula 1 Grand Prix, the FIFA World Club Championship, and several concerts by the largest names in the music industry including Beyoncé and Aerosmith.
Ras Al Khaimah was selected on August 5, 2009 to host the America’s Cup. With six months to conclude preparations for the event, Ras Al Khaimah has spent over $120 million to develop the venue’s infrastructure including the development of a 5 million square meter luxury resort island set around a secured marina.
Prior to this current filing, BMW Oracle had never expressed concern over the safety of the venue. To the contrary, the team’s security advisor, following his September visit to review Ras Al Khaimah’s preparations, stated to Dr. Massaad in an email that his risk assessment report would be positive and that he looked forward to “making the event a huge success and demonstrating what a safe and beautiful emirate Ras Al Khaimah is.”
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