What are your thoughts on these multi-hull catamarans they’re now racing in the America’s Cup?

I like it. The America’s Cup’s always been on the leading edge – or the bleeding edge, as they say.

Yes, several months ago, one of my close friends was killed, a guy called Andrew Simpson, a British Olympic gold-medallist. He was a terrific guy and his death was absolutely tragic. And, yes, people have been killed in the America’s Cup before. These boats are not trivial. The loads are massive and if something goes wrong it can be deadly. In Andrew’s case, the Swedish boat Artemis cart-wheeled; as it broke apart he got caught underneath. They couldn’t find him quickly enough in the wreckage. But putting that aside, these boats are now sailing within their safety envelope. And the America’s Cup is very much technology-driven. It should always be about the best sailors in the world, the best managers in the world, and the best technology in the world. Currently, the America’s Cup boats reflect that. But it’s a very different style of sailing to what I was involved with. We’re talking about super-high speeds – these boats are now sailing three times the speed of the wind. Their top speed is around 50 knots now ...

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So you feel the competition’s as prestigious as ever?

Absolutely. The America’s Cup is very high-profile, particularly in Europe. It’s still the most prestigious sporting event in the world. Yes, we see little profile in Australia, but to be honest, we’ve seen very little profile since 1987 when we lost it. We climbed our Everest ...