October 7, 2017 10:00am by David Farrar

New York Yacht Club to challenge

Team New Zealand have welcomed the return of the New York Yacht Club to the America’s Cup after an absence of 15 years.

The legendary US club announced on Friday (NZT) that it will challenge for the 36th America’s Cup to be held in Auckland in early 2021.

The announcement capped off a week of intense interest in the Cup since Team New Zealand and Italian Challenger of Record Luna Rossa released the protocol.

New York are the first confirmed challenge, but Britain and France have signalled their intentions while Switzerland and Australia have also expressed interest in being in Auckland. Teams can file challenges from January 1.

Great to have the New York Yacht Club back in the fray. Without them it doesn’t seem like a proper America’s Cup.