Francesca Rudkin: The America’s Cup needs characters like Spithill. - The Sunday Session with Francesca Rudkin

So the America’s Cup finals are almost here. At last!  

Ineos Britannia booked the finals spot against Team New Zealand after beating Luna Rossa Prada in the Louis Vuitton Cup final 7-4. The British will be thrilled to have made it after a close and exciting series, with Luna Rosa looking so good in the early round robins and pushing the competition to its limits.  

That the series was so hard-fought was important, because it’s a competition that only thrives if the races are close and the pressure is intense. 

So it feels a real shame that at the end of the Louis Vuitton Cup Jimmy Spithill announced, “I really think I’m at the end of the line now. I think this will be it for me. It’s probably time the gloves are hung up”