Shamrock V was built for Sir Thomas Lipton to challenge the Americans for the America's Cup once again (for the fifth time!). She was the first British yacht to be built under the rules of the then new J class racing yachts. Ironically, today she is the only survivor of that class built in wood (the other two survivors are built in steel and the new ones are built in aluminum). She had undergone continuous improvements since her construction, with a change in her armament and even her hull shape(!), but still she could not compete with the American Enterprise in the Cup races. After losing the Cup, the yacht passed into the hands of Tommy Sopwitsch, who now wanted to compete with the Americans for the Cup and bought the yacht as a training boat and sparring partner for his Endeavour. After World War II, the yacht passed into the hands of an Italian owner who installed a very elegant interior in rare maple. In 1967 she underwent a complete overhaul with all the trim stripped and the kit cleaned of rust, after which she was re-shelled with two-inch teak planks. Since then, the boat has changed owners many times, and today is owned by a company created specifically for her careful operation, the Newport Shamrock V Corporation.
