America's Cup opening postponed by threatening weather

The opening day of the 35th America's Cup has been pushed back to Saturday because of high winds forecast for Friday, organizers said.

"Forecasts indicate that winds may gust over 30 knots during the afternoon and evening, so with the safety of the sailors and spectators as the key priority, ACEA (America's Cup Event Authority) and ACRM (America's Cup Race Management) have decided to postpone Friday's events," organizers said in a statement on Thursday.

They added that the forecast calls for "significantly improved" conditions on Saturday and the days following. The four races scheduled for Friday will now be added to the race schedules for Saturday and Sunday, with organizers aiming to get the event back on schedule by Monday.

"We are obviously disappointed that the strong winds mean we have had to postpone day one of the 35th America?s Cup," Sir Russell Coutts, chief executive of the ACEA, said in a statement. "This is clearly a decision we have not taken lightly and appreciate the inconvenience caused to the sellout crowd. Our primary concern, however, is always safety for everyone involved in the America's Cup."

Coutts said an extra hour of racing would take place on Saturday and Sunday.

The battle for the Cup, now held by Oracle Team USA, opens with qualifying to produce a challenger.

Five teams -- Emirates Team New Zealand, Sweden's Artemis Racing, Britain's Land Rover BAR, Softbank Team Japan and Groupama Team France -- are vying for the right to take on Team USA next month on Bermuda's Great Sound.