Border crossing for SailGP Season 2

As the eight international teams prepare for the start of the second season of SailGP, with the opening stage in Bermuda on April 24-25, the crew onboard the F50 catamarans have seen some revisions which have extended beyond team borders. Here’s an update:

• Australia SailGP Team, as season 1 champions, now has a Brit among their ranks with Nick Hutton onboard as grinder, joining Aussie returnees Tom Slingsby (helm), Kyle Langford (wing trimmer), Jason Waterhouse (flight controller), Sam Newton (grinder), and Kinley Fowler (grinder/flight controller). – Details

• Japan SailGP Team has added Italian sailor and eight-time world champion Francesco Bruni and Great Britain’s Olympic medalist Chris Draper, who take on the roles of flight controller and wing trimmer respectively. They join helm Nathan Outteridge (AUS) along with the Japanese line-up of Leo Takahashi, Tim Morishima and Yuki Kasatani, who were part of the successful team that were runner-up in Season 1. – Details

• British SailGP Team helm Ben Ainslie is joined by Australian Olympic medalist Iain Jensen as wing trimmer and flight controller Luke Parkinson, who is typically listed as Australian but appear to also have British residency. The grinder roles are filled by Brits: Matt Gotrel, Neil Hunter (GBR), and Richard Mason who have been part of the Great Britain SailGP Team since the first season. – Details

• France SailGP Team helm Billy Besson has brought on UK top multihull sailor Leigh McMillan as wing trimmer while François Morvan (FRA) is the flight controller with grinding handled by France’s Matthieu Vandame, Olivier Herledant, and Timothé Lapauw. – Details

• The US SailGP Team has had a significant overhaul, starting with 2-time America’s Cup winner Jimmy Spithill (AUS) now leading the squad on helm along with Antiguan Alex Sinclair on the handles and Paul Campbell-James (GBR) as wing trimmer. The lone holdover is American Rome Kirby who moves from helm to flight controller and is joined by countrymen Andrew Campbell and Cooper Dressler as grinders. – Details

• New entries for season two from Denmark and New Zealand are all nationals of their flag, whereas Spain intends to have all nationals but has Kiwi Phil Robertson as helm in an interim capacity while Jordi Xammar prepares for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.

• Additionally, an initiative for the second season was to promote the training and development of female athletes for participation in SailGP. The announced plan was for 16 women to be invited to participate in SailGP’s pre-season training camp in Bermuda and at least one female athlete to be selected to train and be immersed within each team for Season 2. – Details

SailGP details – Team rosters – Results – How to watch – Facebook

SailGP Season 2 Schedule*
April 24-25, 2021 – Bermuda Grand Prix
June 5-6, 2021 – Italy Grand Prix – Taranto
July 17-18, 2021 – Great Britain Grand Prix – Plymouth
August 20-21, 2021 – ROCKWOOL Denmark Grand Prix – Aarhus
September 11-12, 2021 – France Grand Prix – Saint-Tropez
October 9-10, 2021 – Spain Grand Prix – Andalusia
January 29-30, 2022 – New Zealand Grand Prix – Christchurch
March 26-27, 2022 – United States Grand Prix – San Francisco (Season 2 Grand Final)
*Subject to change

2021-22 Teams
Australia, Tom Slingsby
Denmark, Nicolai Sehested
France, Billy Besson
Great Britain, Ben Ainslie
Japan, Nathan Outteridge
New Zealand, Peter Burling
Spain, Jordi Xammar/ Phil Robertson*
United States, Jimmy Spithill
*Season 1 skipper Phil Robertson (NZL) will helm in an interim capacity while Jordi Xammar prepares for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.

Established in 2018, SailGP seeks to be an annual, global sports league featuring fan-centric inshore racing in some of the iconic harbors around the globe. Rival national teams compete in identical F50 catamarans with the season culminating with a $1 million winner-takes-all match race.