Artemis Racing’s America’s Cup base at Morgan’s Point officially opened for business yesterday.

Nearly 500 guests attended the glamorous opening ceremony held indoors, among them Michael Dunkley, the Premier, the Governor George Ferguson and Sir Russell Coutts, chief executive of Oracle Team USA, the America’s Cup defender.

The new facility, which overlooks the Great Sound, racing venue for next year’s 35th America’s Cup, will provide the hub for the Swedish challenger’s sailing operations over the next 15 months.

The building contains a working shed for the two prototype AC45S racing catamarans and the 50-foot America’s Cup boat the team will compete in during next year’s Louis Vuitton America’s Cup Qualifiers, along with a world class gym, design and support team offices and a two floor hospitality area.

The layout of the fully operational base is similar to Artemis’s previous one in San Francisco.

“We’ve got a very flat structure here, where our whole team is basically on the same level,” Adam May, the design coordinator, said. “The design office is on the same level as the boat, the sailors, the support team etc, which enables us to work together more effectively and it gives the whole group visibility and accessibility to the entire operation.

“In terms of the technical set up, we have a design office where we have everyone set up in connection to each other. We’ve got great interaction among the design team in the office and the office layout allows a quiet flow of information in between the different groups. Just outside of the office we have the actual physical floor space where we are set-up to eventually operate three yachts with corresponding wings.”

Torbjörn Törnqvist, the Artemis team principal, is impressed by the short time it took to build the facility, which is located right at the tip of Morgan’s Point.

“I actually saw a picture of an empty beach and a few months later you come here and it’s absolutely fantastic,” he said. “It’s all credit to everyone who has done this. It’s a great concept, having a building like this and to design it to your purpose.”

May said that moving the team’s operations to Morgan’s Point early in the next America’s Cup cycle has its advantages.

“Years of Olympic sailing has proved that you can’t beat exposure to the competition venue; getting to learn the place that you are going to compete in,” he added. “That aspect is important in any major regatta, something all the teams are very aware of.

“It has also been good to get the move out of the way early and get settled here on Morgan’s Point. Now we can focus on going forward, and won’t be distracted later on at a more critical time in the preparations.“

Iain Percy, the team manager, added: “We know it’s going to be a perfect training base for us. But you don’t win the America’s Cup by having a good base, that’s very important to stress.

“That said, it certainly helps and it is going to create an environment, as well as provide the necessary practical facilities, to allow us to win.”

Artemis Racing represents the Royal Swedish Yacht Club, the fifth-oldest yacht club in the world, and is comprised of some of the most successful and respected sailors and designers in the world.