Ainslie set to begin bid for America's Cup glory

Ben Ainslie is at helm of the British America's Cup contender for the third time

Ben Ainslie's Ineos Britannia team are set to start their bid to become the first British crew to win the America's Cup.

After almost three years of meticulous planning and testing, six teams will race their new AC75 boats against each other for the first time on Thursday in the final preliminary regatta.

The four-day event takes place within sight of the port area of Barcelona, the host city for the 37th America's Cup.

The competition begins in earnest on 29 August, with a series of races to decide which boat will take on defending champions New Zealand for the trophy in October.

Four-time Olympic sailing champion Ainslie is the skipper and chief executive officer of the Britannia team, which is backed by billionaire Sir Jim Ratcliffe's Ineos Group.

They have worked with the Mercedes Formula 1 team to develop their boat, and with the Ineos Grenadiers cycling team to help the crew reach their physical peak.

First held around the Isle of Wight in 1851, the America's Cup is the world's oldest sporting event.

Here is our guide to the 37th edition, which includes a women's series for the first time in the competition's 173-year history.

How does the America's Cup work and what's the schedule?

Ineos Britannia skimming over the water off the coast of Barcelona

Team New Zealand automatically qualify for the America's Cup final match having won the trophy - known as the Auld Mug - in 2021.

The British team will take on rivals from Switzerland (Alinghi Red Bull Racing), Italy (Luna Rossa), the United States (NYYC American Magic) and France (Orient Express Racing Team) in the Challenger Selection Series leading up to the final series.

Known as the Louis Vuitton Cup, there are three competitions from 29 August to 7 October:

• 29 August to 8 September: Louis Vuitton Cup round-robin stage - all teams race each other twice, with the top four going through and the leading team choosing who they face in the semi-finals

• 14-19 September: Louis Vuitton Cup semi-finals - first to win five races advances

• 26 September to 7 October: Louis Vuitton Cup final - first to win seven races qualifies for the America's Cup match

• 12-17 October: the 37th America's Cup - the Louis Vuitton Cup winner takes on holders Team New Zealand, with the first to seven race victories winning the trophy

• Races start at 13:00 BST and reserve dates are scheduled if required. You can watch the action live on TNT Sports.

How fast are the America's Cup boats?

Ineos Britannia have enlisted the help of engineering experts at the Mercedes Formula 1 team in Brackley, Northamptonshire in a bid to find a technical advantage over their rivals.

The AC75, or America's Cup 75, is a 75ft foiling race boat with one carbon-fibre hull (a monohull instead of catamaran or trimaran) and has been described as like a "large windsurfing board with towering sails" by Sailing World.

The AC75s - which have sails up to 26.5m high - have extendable hydrofoil wings which can lift the hull up and enable the boats to skim the surface of the water so they appear like they are flying.

This helps the boats to reach exhilarating speeds of more than 50 knots (57.5mph), despite weighing about 6.5 tonnes.

But make a mistake and the boats could capsize.

What is a cyclor and why are they key?

Britannia's crew features Olympic medallists and world champions from the sports of sailing and rowing

Fast starts are key, race tactics and weather conditions will all play their part, but it could be human effort which determines who wins the America's Cup.

Each boat has eight crew members, reduced from 11 last time, with two helmsmen and two sail trimmers on different sides.

Joining Ainslie as co-helm will be Olympic gold medallist Dylan Fletcher, who won the 49er class at Tokyo 2020, while Leigh McMillan and Bleddyn Mon are the trimmers.

The other four sailors on the boat provide the hydraulic power to trim the sails by pedalling static bikes fixed inside the hull.

Four of the nine "cycling sailors" in the Britannia squad have an Olympic rowing background - including 2016 gold medallist Matt Gotrel and Tokyo silver medallist Harry Leask.

Known as "cyclors", they have been put through their paces on dry land by Grenadiers’ top cyclists to build their endurance levels.

Double Olympic gold medallist Giles Scott is the team's head of sailing.

There is also a big onshore team including sailmakers, engineers, software technicians and even meteorologists.

It is estimated that the average America’s Cup campaign costs about £100m.

Ineos Britannia's performance, operation and support team in Barcelona with the AC75 boat Britannia

Ben Ainslie's mission to win the America's Cup

Ainslie won medals at five consecutive Olympics from 1996 onwards, including gold at four consecutive Games from 2000 to 2012.

Competing initially in the Laser category, he switched to the larger Finn boats and won nine World Championship titles across both classes.

Since winning gold at London 2012, Ainslie's goal has been to claim the America's Cup for Great Britain.

He set up his own British team to compete in the America's Cup World Series in 2012-2013 with the aim of gaining experience for a full challenge in 2017.

Ainslie went on to win the Auld Mug in 2013, using all his tactical nous to turn around Team Oracle USA's fortunes in spectacular style.

His two subsequent attempts in a British boat have ended in disappointment.

In 2017, Ainslie's Land Rover BAR team were knocked out in the semi-finals.

In the Covid-hit 2021 campaign, his Ineos Team UK won the round-robin stage but lost 7-1 to Luna Rossa in the final selection race series.

What about the Women's America's Cup?

Women have competed in the America's Cup before - most notably American Dawn Riley, who has sailed in the competition three times and was team manager of the French entry in 2007 - but have never had a standalone series.

The inaugural Women’s America’s Cup takes place in AC40 boats - a smaller version of the AC75 - from 5-13 October in Barcelona.

Great Britain's Athena Pathway will be one of 12 teams to start the qualification series from 5-9 October.

Hannah Mills, Britain's most successful female Olympic sailor - with two golds and a silver - leads the 12-strong British squad.

The 36-year-old from Wales has assembled a team full of Olympic and world medallists, including her former partner Saskia Clark and Paris 2024 kite sailing gold medallist Ellie Aldridge.

They will hope to advance to the final on 11 October, and from there reach the match race final on 13 October.

Great Britain are also represented in the Youth America’s Cup, taking place from 17-26 September.