In Saturday's semi-finals New Zealander Gavin Brady beat world match racing champion Magnus Holmberg and his Team Stora Enso from Sweden 3-0, while US Virgin Islander Peter Holmberg defeated Ed Baird from St Petersburg, Florida, the skipper of the Young America challenge at the last America's Cup, 3-1.

Magnus Holmberg, who has been second twice in the Gold Cup and who first sailed in the event ten years ago, had been expected to provide some stiff opposition for Brady, but the New Zealander and his crew won with relative ease.

Holmberg, who heads the Swedish Victory Challenge for the next America's Cup, looked strongest in his first race against Brady. He led for three legs only to lose when the Kiwi drew close at the last weather mark and then overtook on a tense run to the finish.

Holmberg was philosophical in defeat.

"I think we made it easier for Gavin and his team than we were hoping to," he said. "They sailed really, really well and they picked the right side of the course. Today was the type of day where if you went the wrong way, it seemed like you were a long, long way behind."

Peter Holmberg won his first two races against Ed Baird and controlled at the start of the third, only to lose ground in a big wind shift and drop steadily behind. But he then came back to win the fourth race.

Holmberg described the light shifty airs as quite trying. "It's not necessarily match racing as much as it is being very smart about where you go," he said. "You don't have many chances to change and come back and do something different. For that reason the team makes a big difference and I'm pretty fortunate here. I owe a big thanks to Paul Cayard (sailing head of Oracle Racing Challenge) who stepped on our boat, took up a position that is not necessarily the most graceful and I appreciate him doing the bow and looking around and calling the shots."