UPDATED STATEMENT FROM EMIRATES TEAM NEW ZEALAND:
After racing on Race day one of the Louis Vuitton Round Robin, as the team were lifting their AC75 ‘Taihoro’ from the water, there was an issue with the lift and the boat landed heavily onto its supporting cradle.
*UPDATE 10:30am CEST
"We have assessed the damage and have now started the repair, this will continue 24 hours a day. There is some structural damage aft in the boat, but the main force was taken on the forward cradle splash. Overnight this area has been removed (in other words we have cut the piece out of the hull bottom) and the repair has started which means building a new piece of boat. It is too early at this stage to say when we will be sailing again but I have seen these guys work miracles before. We are still unsure why the boat fell, and this is ongoing with the crane technicians." - Grant Dalton
The team have secured the boat with a portable crane and it is now safely being put back in the shed where the full extent of the damage will be assessed by the team overnight.
From initial assessments a call has been made that Emirates Team New Zealand will not be sailing tomorrow.
Once further investigation is made in the following 24 hours and a full plan for the repair of Taihoro is in place, the team will give a further update on the duration of time the team will be off the water.
Emirates Team New Zealand CEO Grant Dalton said, “Clearly this is a setback for the team at such an important time of the campaign. These are the moments that can define an America’s Cup campaign, and we have an amazing group of dedicated and talent people who will be working around the clock on getting the boat repaired.
“We will not be sailing tomorrow at least, and will provide further updates on the outlook in due course.”
20:30 CEST