ONE OF Britain's most successful sailors of recent years has been killed in a sailing accident while training for the America's Cup which starts in July. Olympic champion Andrew 'Bart' Simpson died after his catamaran capsized off the coast of California. It is only the second fatality in the 162-year-history of the Cup.
The tragic accident occurred in San Francisco Bay, near Treasure Island, yesterday afternoon. The 72ft Artemis catamaran with a 131ft-tall wing sail suddenly flipped over, throwing all 11 crew members into the water.
According to the San Francisco Chronicle, the Briton was the only sailor unable to swim to safety and spent ten minutes trapped beneath the hull.
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When Simpson was eventually hauled aboard a support vessel, a San Francisco police officer from the department's marine unit leapt aboard and began performing CPR as the boat raced toward an ambulance waiting ashore.
But despite frantic attempts to resuscitate Simpson, he was later pronounced dead. Mindy Talmadge, a spokeswoman for the San Francisco Fire Department, said that one other crew member had suffered minor injuries.
Simpson was serving as Artemis Racing's team strategist as they challenged the American holders, Oracle Racing, and teams from New Zealand and Italy for the America's Cup. "It is with immense sadness that Artemis Racing confirms the tragic death of crew member Andrew 'Bart' Simpson," said Paul Cayard, the team's chief executive.
"Simpson... was trapped underneath the boat and despite attempts to revive him, by doctors afloat and subsequently ashore, his life was lost. The entire Artemis Racing team is devastated by what happened. Our heartfelt condolences are with Andrew's wife and family."
Simpson, from Sherborne in Dorset, won the Olympic Star class gold with childhood friend Iain Percy (now his Artemis team boss) in Beijing in 2008, and the following year was awarded an MBE for services to sport.
In the London Olympics last year the pair took silver in the same class after being beaten by the Swedish duo of Fredrik Loof and Max Salminen in the final race. "'We didn't get it right," said Simpson afterwards. "Fair play to the Swedes, they had a great regatta and did a great job."
John Derbyshire, performance director of the UK's Royal Yachting Association (RYA), paid tribute to Simpson, saying: "He was a great talent and a key figure in our World Class Programme over many years culminating in his well-deserved Olympic success. He was a huge inspiration to others, both within the British Sailing Team and across the nation."
According to the San Francisco Chronicle, the conditions in the Bay were blustery but not stormy at the time of the accident, with winds of 20 mph. The paper said that the accident underscores "the inherent danger in pushing souped-up racing sailboats, capable of reaching speeds of 46 mph, to their limits on the windy and choppy bay".
