New Zealand clinch round-robin stage of Louis Vuitton Cup

The New Zealanders completed the 15.43-nautical-mile course in San Francisco in 46 minutes 53 seconds, comfortably ahead of an Italian team that were deemed not to have finished because they were more than five minutes behind.

Emirates Team New Zealand celebrates after winning their race in Round Robin 4 against Luna Rossa Challenge for the Louis Vuitton Cup in San Francisco

New Zealand's win ensured they will finish at the top of the standings in the round-robin phase of the challenger series. They have accumulated a maximum of seven points from their seven races, four of which they have won on forfeit.

The Italians remain second with three points while the Swedish entrant, Artemis Racing, has no points after sitting out the round-robin stage.

By winning the round-robin stage New Zealand has the option of advancing directly to the Louis Vuitton Cup Final or picking an opponent for the semi-final round, starting August 6.

(Reporting by Julian Linden in New York; Editing by Frank Pingue)