Mary, I think the whole ban on advertising goes way back to when US Sailing was called the US Yacht Racing Union. They used the word "Corinthian" quite a bit back then. It was supposed to be a "Gentleman's Sport", like Golf, where rich people got together on the weekends, wore funny clothes and showed everyone how much money they had, thus, there was no need for sponsorships to pay for sails and equipment. There was no money in winning, just a silver bowl or pickly dish.

Dennis Connor was hated by some when he turned the America's Cup into a full time job vs. a few weeks in June, way back in the 1970's, the years after Ted Turner and Gary Jobson won it (1977?)

If you look at most big-boat monohull regattas, it's still that way (Big boats, meaning 40'+). They do however hire Pro's to drive their boats, but they have put limits on just how many Pro's you can put on each boat.