The Coastguard has revealed those responsible for postponing yesterday’s hotly anticipated America’s Cup races had to be escorted from the course by police.
Two spectator vessels crossed the course boundary at around 4.15pm yesterday, pushing the race between Team New Zealand and Luna Rossa back by another eight minutes.
John Cowan, the Coastguard’s on-water coordinator, told 1 NEWS the passengers on the vessels became somewhat stubborn and belligerent.
“They didn’t want to move basically, they felt they had a right to be there and were reluctant to move,” he said.
The coastguard told 1 NEWS those on board became belligerent and refused to move.
Both boats were escorted from the race area by police and the Harbourmaster.
Cowan said the racecourse is quite narrow, so any intrusions could be catastrophic.
“(It was) broadcast all round the world, here we are with a major sporting event and it’s like we’ve got a streaker on the cricket pitch or something, it’s a bit embarrassing.”
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