BMW Oracle Racing celebrated three major milestones in Valencia, Spain yesterday with the official naming of their first new generation yacht, the official opening of the team base and the launch of an extensive merchandise collection.

Over 600 guests gathered at the impressive new base to watch as Sue Dickson, wife of BMW Oracle Racing skipper and CEO, Chris Dickson, broke the traditional bottle of Champagne across the bow of USA-87.

Commenting Dickson said: “This is a great moment and milestone for our team. A boat christening is always a moving event – for every designer and boatbuilder, for every sailor, for all of us who have the privilege to take part in such a magnificent campaign.

“USA 87 is the result of 1,000 hours of full-scale, two-boat testing and 30,000 man hours invested by our boatbuilding team. Over the coming days and weeks, the challenge will be to tap the yacht’s full potential.”

Extremely strong and lightweight, the two-tonne carbon fiber hull of USA 87 was constructed in the American coastal town of Anacortes, Washington. At the end of February, the “Made in USA” hull travelled from Seattle to Valencia in a spectacular manner – 8,900 km aboard a Russian Antonov cargo plane with support from DHL Global Forwarding click here for previous news story.