The Swiss Don't Often Make Mistakes, But When They Do...

It's currently one-a-piece in the America's Cup final between Emirates Team New Zealand and the reigning Champions Alinghi, from Switzerland (yeah, the country surrounded by land with zero access to the sea).

Pundits and fans are stuck on which team will pull out of this victorious, both the ridiculously precise Swiss and the 'Never Say Die' Kiwis have looked unbeatable at times. However, the Kiwi's victory was a surprise one yesterday brought on by a rare Swiss mistake; apparently someone said 'Avast me-hearties!' instead of 'turn to starboard' and the whole
thing turned into a blame fest.

I'm not certain about the exact Swiss translation of 'Avast' or 'Me-hearties' but I do know that this mistake does not necessarily mean the Kiwi's were purely lucky. Sailing, you see is all about the mistakes of judgement. The better your judgement, the less mistakes you make and the more you win,so while it may seem like New Zealand were gifted the victory, perhaps the truth is that the Swiss are not as inch perfect as the fans have come to expect?

[Official 32nd America's Cup Website]