After a rocky time - with the loss of title sponsor followed by a somewhat controversial change of venue - the Admiral's Cup finally looks to be back on track.

Head - and backer - of GBR Challenge Peter Harrison announced at the Royal Southampton Yacht Club on Wednesday not one but two team entries from Britain.

Double Olympic medallists Ben Ainslie from Lymington and Ian Walker from Hamble are just two faces to take the Royal Ocean Racing Club (RORC) entry to the start line on the Solent on July 10.

And Paralympic gold medallist Andy Cassell from Cowes will head a combined able bodied and physically disabled two-boat team under the burgee of the Cowes Corinthian Yacht Club.

Carrying the title Sailability Admiral's Cup' the two-team entry will be talent packed. With no GBR Challenge sailing schedule for this year, a number of key crew members will be scattered among the boats.

Ainslie and GBR Challenge skipper Ian Walker are set to head the ten-man Rodman 42 crew while Chris Mason from Lymington and a host of Hampshire talent will sail the Farr 52 Chernikeeff 2 with Harrison on board.

"This is an opportunity for the GBR Challenge sailors to maintain a strength of sailing as we do not have an America's Cup campaign running as yet," commented Harrison.

Using his older Farr 50 and a Sinergia 40, half of Cassell's crew will be physically disadvantaged and will have the opportunity to compete on equal terms with some of the best sailors in the world.

This symbiosis between some of Harrison's GBR Challenge team and RYA Sailability has rejuvenated the Admiral's Cup profile and will no doubt bring more competitors to the table.

The two-week inshore and short offshore series is 46 years old and has been won nine times by the British. It is currently lying with a Dutch team yet Harrison is eager for the Cup's return to our shores.

Harrison, who sold his final shares in Chernikeeff in 2000 for £200m, set up the Peter Harrison Foundation - completing a Deed of Gift of £30m with the intention of primarily helping disabled and disadvantaged people by creating opportunities through sport and education for young people.

Already £4.1m has been utilised in sailing and rugby to date and the forecast is for 150 sailing clubs around the country to provide facilities for disabled sailing.

A smiling Cassell, one of the luminaries of the Paralympics, commented: "We will prove that we can sail on the same level as you lot."

Cassell, who skippered an entry in the Admiral's Cup back in 1975, added: "This time we'll keep the disabilities to the more manoeuvrable (considering the design of boats) but next time who knows?"

Hannah Stodel from West Mersea leads a varied profile of sailors who will vie for the valuable ten to 15 disabled places on the Cowes Combined Yacht Club team.

A wealth of interest has been shown and Cassell has a three-week time slot in which to make his selection before the next RORC qualifying event.

Almost totally blind sailor, Tim Horsfield who hadn't sailed until two years ago spent the whole of last winter racing the Caribbean circuit and is hopeful of a place.

"You have to adapt and survive and this is a great opportunity for us," he said.