SAN FRANCISCO — A two-time Olympic sailing medalist from Britain was killed Thursday afternoon when Sweden’s Artemis Racing catamaran capsized during an America’s Cup practice run on San Francisco Bay.

Andrew “Bart” Simpson was trapped underneath the boat and died despite attempts to revive him by doctors afloat and on the dock of the St. Francis Yacht club, the team said.

“The entire Artemis Racing team is devastated by what happened,” said CEO Paul Cayard in a statement. “Our heartfelt condolences are with Andrew’s wife and family.”

The tragedy follows a highly-publicized capsize of Team USA Oracle’s boat last fall and comes just months before the Bay Area hosts the world’s most famous sailing race.

Simpson was one of the 11-man crew out for a practice run in the team’s 72-foot catamaran when it flipped at about 1 p.m. near the Ferry Building. Chase boats from all four teams that will be competing this summer, including Oracle Team USA, Emirates Team New Zealand and Italy’s Luna Rossa, all sped to the scene to help in the rescue.

Shortly after the capsize, chatter heard on the VHF radio that sailors use for general communications suggested that one crewman was missing for a number of minutes.

San Francisco Fire Chief Joanne Hayes-White said Thursday afternoon that Simpson was submerged for about 10 minutes before teammates pulled him from the water. The police boat that was first to respond reported no pulse or breathing.

Simpson was taken in a chase boat to the harbor at the St. Francis Yacht Club, where emergency workers performed CPR for 20 minutes on the dock. Simpson was pronounced dead at 1:43 p.m. and his body was loaded into a white San Francisco medical examiner’s van.

“It’s a tragic day,” Hayes-White said. “This is someone that is well-known and well-regarded as an expert racer.”

A second crew member was taken to the yacht club and treated for lacerations, according to San Francisco Fire Department spokeswoman Mindy Talmadge. The other nine crewmen were not hurt, the team said.

It is still unclear why the boat capsized. Winds were blowing between 15-20 mph, a typical wind speed for spring in the bay, and similar to what is expected for the America’s Cup races this summer.

San Francisco police spokesman Albie Esparza said the department’s major accident investigations team will lead the inquiry into the crash. This is the same team that investigated the accident during a yacht race off the Farallon Islands in April 2012 that killed five people.

“They’re going to be tasked with finding out exactly what happened, talking to any witnesses and reconstructing the accident as best we can,” Esparza said.

Photos of the wrecked boat, which flipped, suggested that the front of the twin-hulled boat dug into the water and pitch-poled end-over-end — the same problem that capsized the Oracle boat last fall, said Andy Turpin, managing editor of Latitude 38 sailing magazine, based in Mill Valley. Turpin was monitoring the capsize and studying photos Thursday.

“It looks as though the port side hull twisted badly or broke in half and looks as though the forward cross beam — a major structural beam that holds the front and back together — apparently broke or parted from the port-side hull,” Turpin said. “When one bow buries into the water, then all the forces of inertia push the boat over head first.”

After Oracle’s capsize last fall, all teams reviewed their safety policies. Along with life jackets and crash helmets, all Oracle crew members carry knives to cut through lines in case they get caught or trapped as well as small canisters of oxygen.

San Francisco police will investigate the accident.

Simpson’s death appears to be only the second death during an America’s Cup campaign. In February 1999, the Spanish team lost crewman Martin Wizner, one of the country’s leading sailors, during training. He died instantly when he was hit in the head when the block of a halyard broke.

Oracle’s capsize of its first 72-foot catamaran in October, on its eighth day training on the boat, became international news. The boat, which could reach speeds higher than 40 mph, capsized in strong winds.

A strong ebb tide and choppy waters dragged the boat through the Golden Gate, broke the mast and damaged the hulls. No one was injured.

Oracle repaired that boat and is using it as a spare. Oracle only recently launched its second 72-footer and has been practicing on that vessel.

Staff Writers Peter Hegarty contributed to this report. Contact Julia Prodis Sulek at 408-278-3409.