A NEW GENERATION - THE ACC

The only good thing to come of the entire Big Boat fiasco was a new class of boat that produced a more modern design with spectacular performance in the lighter winds of San Diego; the America's Cup Class, a type of boat built to a design rule. Under the rule, all boats look similar, although the designers have enough leeway, trading off one parameter for another for the boats to differ in speed. Progress is always made from one generation to the next. This is the Class of boat that is still used today.

In 1992, Dennis Conner was beaten in the Defender Trials and lost the right to defend, the honour going to Kansas billionaire Bill Koch with his massive, four-boat America programme.

On the challenger side, New Zealand met the Italian Il Moro de Venezia Challenge, eventually yielding to relentless pressure from the Italians and skipper Paul Cayard. In the concluding battle for the 29th America's Cup, Koch, occasionally steering the boat himself, and his skipper Buddy Melges, successfully defended the America's Cup.