An interactive exhibition showcasing the technology and history of the America’s Cup has been officially unveiled at the Bermuda Underwater Exploration Institute.

The Built to Win exhibition opened last night and was attended by dignitaries, America’s Cup and Team Bermuda sailors, and sponsors including Michael Dunkley, Governor George Fergusson, BF&M president and CEO John Wight, and Oracle Team USA sailor Ian “Fresh” Burns.

The educational exhibition, designed in-house at BUEI by head of design and exhibitions Russell de Moura and project manager Jessica Meredith, includes artefacts from the very first America’s Cup event in 1851 as well as exhibits displaying the cutting-edge technology used in today’s racing.

Among the highlights are the virtual reality headsets that place the viewer in the seat of a soaring America’s Cup catamaran, a video game set in the heart of the Great Sound, a grinding machine that tests the user’s mental agility before and after exercise, and an array of catamaran materials used on the crafts throughout the years.

Opening the exhibition, the Premier said: “So far Bermuda has done a great job in doing everything we have applied ourselves to make this [the America’s Cup] happen. “We have made all our visitors feel at home, we have given them some great conditions to start training, they have built their bases, we are well on our way to completing the South Basin, which should be finished in a couple of months, and now to have the pleasure to be here for the opening of a wonderful exhibit is just another feather in the cap of how Bermuda is handling the America’s Cup 2017.

“We need to continue to talk about the America’s Cup, we need to continue to get all people involved because the excitement of the America’s Cup 2017 is real and it is good for Bermuda.”

Mr Burns said he had been participating in the America’s Cup since 1983 but admitted he had a “soft spot” for Bermuda. “I was pretty excited that Bermuda was in the running and even more so that we would get a chance to live here in Bermuda so I thank you.”