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The 33rd America's Cup features the biggest and fastest boats in the 159-year history of sailing's most prestigious trophy -- but fickle winds at the Spanish port picked by a US court to host the event threaten serious disruption.

Already the first race of the best-of-three match between defending Swiss champions Alinghi and US side Oracle scheduled for Monday off the eastern Spanish port of Valencia was cancelled due to weak winds which frequently changed direction.

The race -- 20 miles upwind and 20 miles back -- between the teams led by rival billionaires Ernesto Bertarelli and Larry Ellison is now set for Wednesday but forecasters are not certain weather condition will allow it to go ahead either.

Oracle meteorologist Chris Bedford, a veteran of eight America's Cups, said it is easier to get the right sailing conditions for the race, on a coastline that faces West, such as in California where his team is based.

Oracle trimaran remains in port

"We certainly will get conditions that will suitable for the race schedule here. It will happen, it just may take a while," he said.

Alinghi's giant catamaran, the Alinghi 5, and Oracle's equally large trimaran, the USA, spent hours at the starting line located some 30 nautical miles off the Mediterranean port on Monday waiting for conditions to improve before race director Harold Bennet finally pulled the plug on the day's match.

"We sat with next to no wind where we were. It is a real shame," said Bennet. "I always knew it was going to be like this."

Wind speeds in the racing area on Monday varied from between just 1.5 knots to a maximum of 11 knots.

This is the first time that an America's Cup is being held in a Northern Hemisphere winter, a result of the lengthy legal battle between Ellison and Bertarelli which also led the event to be postponed by one year to 2010.

Alinghi proposed that it be held in Valencia in May, then suggested it take place in the United Arab Emirates in February before finally putting forward Australia. Oracle wanted it to be held in March or April in Valencia.

The New York Supreme Court ultimately rejected Ras al-Khaimah, upholding a challenge by Oracle which considered the site unsafe due to its proximity to Iran.

But although the rules of the sailing race specify that the Cup cannot be held in the northern hemisphere between November 1 and May 1, the court also ruled that this time around it could go ahead in February in Valencia, where Alinghi won the last edition of the sailing race in 2007.

The last Cup though was held in July when summertime Mediterranean breezes are stronger and more consistent and it featured smaller single-hulled boats on shorter courses. The race area this time around is 400 squares miles.

"It's a big ask to get that much runway (over a large area) that has consistent wind direction. It's going to be quite difficult," he said.

The sheer size of the boats adds to the challenge.

The Alinghi 5 features a mast that is as tall as a 17-storey building while the USA, has a solid vertical wingspan of 68 metres (223 feet), more than twice the length of the wing of a Boeing 747.

The wind speed and direction can be vastly different at the top of the boats from that at sea level.

"We knew the conditions would be like this here. We can?t count on every day being perfect to have a race," said Alinghi meteorologist Jack Katfey.

AFP