John Craig Named PRO of AC34

January 16 , 2011

John Craig has been appointed Principal Race Officer of the 34th America's Cup. A native Californian, and a resident of San Francisco, Craig will be responsible for conducting the races of the America's Cup World Series, the Louis Vuitton Cup and the America's Cup Finals.

"I've always wanted to be involved in the America's Cup," Craig said. "I've lived in the Bay Area with my wife and children for 11 years and to have this opportunity come to my doorstep is very fortunate.

"This new look America's Cup, with the wingsailed catamarans, the new format and race course innovations, the media integration, will be incredible. Racing in the natural 'stadium' of San Francisco Bay will put the event in front of an enormous number of people. As PRO it will be a challenge to develop and implement all of this, but I think the result will be exciting racing on a scale we've never seen before."

A board member of US Sailing, Craig has been the race manager at San Francisco's St. Francis Yacht Club for over 10 years, running everything from Optimist regattas to World Championships for the Star and Melges 32 classes. In doing so, he has worked closely with many of the top sailors in the world.

"John brings very relevant experience to the job of Principal Race Officer," said Iain Murray, the Regatta Director of the 34th America's Cup. "With the Host City confirmed as San Francisco, it's a great asset to be able to bring on board somebody local with so much experience on the Bay. I know John will build a top team to ensure the racing is fair for the teams, fun for the spectators and conducted with the highest degree of professionalism."

As per the Protocol, Craig was appointed by the Regatta Director, in consultation with ISAF.

When Loss Means Gain

St. Francis Yacht Club is sorry to see John go. He stepped into a race program that was already a leader, and then he relentlessly improved it, year by year, never taking his eye off the goal of excellence. In looking back, John said, "The St. Francis Yacht Club is an awesome place to work. It runs the heaviest racing schedule in the world. We've run 30 to 35 events every year-at least 120 days a year of racing, and an amazing cadre of volunteers has supported the effort at every turn. I'll miss all that, but the truth is, I'm not exactly going away."

Instead, John has agreed to continue working with the club to maintain its racing standards and will return occasionally as one of the PROs taking the helm of major regattas. Highlights of the 2011 racing season at St. Francis YC include the Junior Windsurfing Worlds, Laser 4.7 Worlds, Laser Masters Worlds and the Rolex Big Boat Series.

In the words of St. Francis Yacht Club Commodore Patrick Nolan, "John Craig has been instrumental in making our on-the-water program the very best in the world. Over the last 11 years John has worked diligently to insure that our racing program's excellence is self sustaining and will continue to develop. We are fortunate for his work, and we are thankful for his work. We wish John the best of luck and great success in his new position."

- Melanie Roberts, Race Coordinator, St. Francis Yacht Club

Meanwhile, the first AC 45 took her maiden voyage at 20 knots in Auckland Monday, January 17. ©2011 Gilles Martin-Raget/www.americascup.com