Sail GP: NZ wins home leg, Coutts hits out at “extreme” management plan | 1News

SailGP chief executive Sir Russell Coutts has disputed the endangered status of Hector’s dolphins whose presence on the course cancelled racing on Lyttelton Harbour on day one of the New Zealand leg.

In a fiery statement Sunday afternoon, Coutts hit out at the “extreme” marine mammal management plan "forced upon" SailGP and said New Zealand was "handcuffed" by bureaucracy and red tape.
"SailGP operates all over the world and, no doubt there are marine mammals in the water in all of the locations we race. We’ve never had an incident in 35 events.

Meanwhile, New Zealand won its home leg of the SailGP series on Sunday to take the overall series lead from Australia who collided with a mark in the first fleet race of the day and took no further part in the event. New Zealand's Skipper Peter Burling called the race "the best day in Sail GP history".


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