Omega Grabs the Sailing Spotlight – The Louis Vuitton Cup

The stage is set. The players are in place, and the quest for the America’s Cup trophy is set to begin. The conclusion of the Louis Vuitton Cup saw Omega’s Emirates Team New Zealand win and earn the right to challenge Team Oracle USA for the America’s Cup trophy. We previewed the America’s Cup season and the new AC72 yachts here; now we are ready for the dramatic denouement. In a prescient move, Omega made ready with its Omega ETNZ Seamaster Diver Special Edition. The Race is on, and Omega is there!

The Louis Vuitton Cup is the penultimate competition to determine the challenger who will race against last year’s winner for the America’s Cup trophy. On Sunday, August 25th, Omega’s Emirates Team New Zealand dealt Luna Rossa a 7-1 defeat in a foggy, capricious San Francisco Bay. This year catapulted the longest sailing competition from the bemused interest of the topsider-clad elite into a world more nearly resembling Extreme Sports or Formula One. This year witnessed carbon fiber wings, record speeds, lovely San Francisco weather (not), a razor’s edge between capsizing and a winning tact, and the unavoidable consequence of speed – danger. The tragic death, earlier this year, of Team Artemis’ sailor, Andrew ‘Bart’ Simpson, reminded us all that the race, with its breakthrough progress, had also assumed graduated risk. There was more on the line than ever before. The Kiwis ran away with the Louis Vuitton victory, and Omega supplied a watch worthy of such achievement.

The Omega Seamaster ETNZ is a limited edition of 2,013 pieces. On June 26, Omega President Stephen Urquhart and ETNZ (Emirates Team New Zealand) skipper Dean Barker launched the new watch, coinciding with the season of a Louis Vuitton Cup victory. Omega and Team ETNZ have partnered since 1995. That was the last time the America’s Cup was run in the US (San Diego, CA), and the team went on to win the America’s Cup. Said Barker, “I’m honored to wear the new Seamaster Diver ETNZ Limited Edition timepiece and am proud to represent OMEGA as we embark on the 34th America’s Cup. We appreciate OMEGA’s commitment to Emirates Team New Zealand – and to the sport of sailing throughout history.” On the caseback is the ETNZ logo and the limited edition number with “Challenger for the 34th America’s Cup” engraved around the outside. With the Louis Vuitton Cup win, the watch has become a de facto collectible, but imagine if Team Emirates goes on to beat Team Oracle and win the America’s Cup.

Regardless of the final challenge, the Louis Vuitton Cup win gives this watch swagger – as if it needed any. The limited edition has the Co-Axial calibre 3330 and a host of features to master the waves: unidirectional rotating bezel, helium escape valve, date corrector, Superluminova coating; and it is water resistant to 300 meters (1000 feet). The matte black dial features red accents to incorporate the ETNZ red and black color scheme, which continues on the strap. The ceramic bezel crowns the 44 mm stainless steel case, and screw down pushers engage the regatta function, which is a count-down feature for a precise race start.Should the Team Emirates win it all, a well-timed start will have been crucial.

Here (CLICK) you can find more information about the various Omega Regatta watches that were created since Omega became partner of the Americas Cup.

The finals start September 7, but until then, enjoy the highlights of the Louis Vuitton Cup victory below: Louis Vuitton Cup video – race 8