New Zealand defeated Britain in the first race of the America's Cup, on Saturday. The holders built on an early advantage after storming across to start slightly before their challengers.

New Zealand now leads the first-to-7 contest 1-0. Peter Burling, Nathan Outteridge and their co-pilots delivered a calm performance under light Mediterranean winds near Barcelona.

Burling told the America's Cup broadcast live that "we got off to a great start and were able to control it."

Outteridge said that the race was dynamic, as the wind conditions fluctuated.

For the first time since 1960, the British team of skipper Ainslie is in a duel to win the "Auld Mug", first raced in 1851. It's billed as being the oldest trophy ever awarded in international sports.

Ainslie stated that the Kiwis had done a good job, and they had just sailed slightly faster than the British team. It had been quite some time since the British sailed with the New Zealand crew.

We'll continue to push forward despite the fact that there's still a long way to travel.

The America's Cup is awash with adages such as "the fastest boat will win". This week, the AC75 monohulls are going to be tested.

The 37th Cup will be contested in Barcelona, Spain. In the qualifying events, the conditions have been challenging due to the variable winds and the unstable sea state.

The early cloud cleared and the wind increased as Saturday's race approached. A postponement was made as officials waited until the wind settled before the start of the head-tohead battle.

Bring the Cup home

Ainslie’s decade-long "bring Cup home" campaign has been backed and supported by British billionaire Jim Ratcliffe. They have worked closely together with the Mercedes Formula One Team to create a winning package that will end the "173-year-long hurt" and bring an end to the "173-year-old pain".

Ainslie and his team improved their speed and handling during the qualifying races, as they refined both their boat and their sailing technique.

As the crew was docking out, the British base had a party atmosphere with music from DJ Rob da Bank. Horns were blaring and flags being waved by fans as sailors and support crew left the base.

New Zealand has been practicing alone, and making changes. Team boss Grant Dalton said he expected AC75s to have "pretty similar" speeds, which means whoever gets off to the fastest start will be more likely to control the race.

The Kiwis were cheered by hundreds of New Zealand fans, some wearing black kits and others draped with the flag. A traditional waka was used to escort the boat away from the dock.

Britain and Italy qualified on Friday for the women's America's Cup Final. Italy won the Youth America's Cup using the smaller AC40 boats, which are used in the women's competition. (Reporting and editing by Toby Davis, Ken Ferris, and Alexander Smith)

(source: Reuters)