NYYC Rolex Invitational Cup fleets confirmed

Thirteen countries will be represented when racing gets underway in the inaugural New York Yacht Club Invitational Cup on September 15, but sadly Australia won't be one of them.
When NYYC Commodore Charles H. Townsend announced the event he described its essence as to “bring together amateur yacht club teams to compete against other teams from around the world”. He predicted the sailing would be tough and demanding, allowing each club to demonstrate the skills of its top sailors.
Commodore Townsend remarked, “This event will once again bring the Corinthian spirit to the forefront of the sport, and enable us to share the excitement of sailing on the waters of Rhode Island Sound.”
The Royal Sydney Yacht Squadron and Royal Prince Alfred Yacht Club were both invited to send teams but both reluctantly declined. It's believed that the cost of shipping boats to the other side of the world was the prime factor in their decisions. With only truly amateur sailors allowed to compete, many of Australia's leading boats and sailors were not eligible. The final list of competing clubs is:
Japan Sailing Federation (Tokyo, Japan)
New York Yacht Club (New York, N.Y., USA)
Norddeutscher Regatta Verein (Hamburg, Germany)
Nyländska Jaktklubben (Helsinki, Finland)
Real Club Nautico Barcelona (Barcelona, Spain)
Royal Bermuda Yacht Club (Hamilton, Bermuda)
Royal Canadian Yacht ClubToronto, Ontario, Canada) (
Royal Cork Yacht Club (County Cork, Ireland)
Royal St. George Yacht Club (County Dublin, Ireland);
Royal Danish Yacht Club (Hellerup, Denmark)
Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club (Hong Kong, China)
Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron (Auckland, New Zealand)
Royal Ocean Racing Club (London, England)
Royal Thames Yacht Club (London, England)
Royal Yacht Squadron (London, England)
St.Francis Yacht Club (San Francisco, Calif., USA);
Yacht Club Costa Smeralda (Porto Cervo, Sardinia, Italy)
Yacht Club de France (Paris, France)
Yacht Club Italiano (Genoa, Italy)
Rolex Watch U.S.A. and Sperry Top-Sider are the official sponsors of the NYYC Invitational Cup. Compliments of Rolex, the most prestigious maker of timepieces in the world and a long-time supporter of sailing, video of each day's racing will be produced by Emmy Award winner and Rolex Testimonee Gary Jobson. The daily shows will air online during the regatta at www.nyyc.org and as part of a 30-minute television program on ESPN2 in the Fall. Sperry Top-Sider, the iconic American brand which invented the world's first boat shoe, hereby defining a new category of footwear, is the event's exclusive footwear supplier. Sperry will debut its latest evolution in performance footwear, the Ventus (the Latin term for “wind”) and will provide this footwear to all competitors, prior to its retail launch in late October.
For more information on the New York Yacht Club Invitational Cup please visit www.nyyc.org.