SailGP comes to Chicago in 2022

The schedule for the third season of SailGP is taking shape, expanded to include ten events, with seven stages taking place in 2022 and the remainder in the first quarter of 2023, with the season expected to finish in April 2023.

The championship kicks-off for the second straight year in Bermuda with the Bermuda Sail Grand Prix presented by Hamilton Princess. From there, the ten-nation fleet will head to a new SailGP destination in North America at Chicago’s Navy Pier on Lake Michigan in June. Both Bermuda and Chicago are two year deals that will see the league return in Season 4.

The fleet will arrive in Europe for the summer with four European events planned, returning to Plymouth (GBR) in late July, Saint-Tropez (FRA) in September, and then later the same month to Cádiz (ESP). In addition, THE circuit will revisit Denmark, but the event has moved from Aarhus to the capital city of Copenhagen.

Racing for 2022 will conclude with another new addition to the calendar as SailGP hosts its first Middle Eastern event in Dubai, UAE presented by P&O Marinas on November 11-12.

Season 3 will continue into 2023 and include an event in New Zealand as part of a four-season plan in which Christchurch and Auckland will share hosting duties of SailGP. The final two events of the season, yet to be announced, will follow.

All the Season 3 action will be available live in over 175 territories through SailGP’s broadcast partners, including Australia (Fox Sports), Denmark (TV2 Sport), France (Canal+ Sport), Japan (J Sports), New Zealand (Sky Sport), South East Asia (beIN SPORTS), Spain (RTVE and TV3), UK/Ireland (SKY Sports) and the U.S. (CBS Sports) as well as across SailGP digital platforms.

As the first climate positive sports and entertainment property, SailGP will continue to push boundaries in the global event industry and its Race for the Future. From its inception in 2019, SailGP has been measuring, reducing and contributing its entire carbon footprint and has set an ambitious target of 55 percent reduction of its carbon footprint – based on science – by 2025, as well as committing to being fully powered by nature by 2025 on shore and on the water.

All of the host cities in Season 3 share SailGP’s commitment to climate action and a cleaner future. SailGP and host cities will collaborate deeper for Season 3 and every host city will sign the league’s Climate Action Charter – working alongside CDP – and commit to local impact projects focusing on clean energy impact and wider ocean conservation.

Running concurrent to the championship trophy for the on-water racing, SailGP’s pioneering Impact League will return even stronger in Season 3. The forward-thinking league – introduced in Season 2 – tracks the positive actions the teams make to reduce their overall carbon footprint and help accelerate inclusivity in sailing. The end result of the season is two podiums, one for sport and one for the planet and the prize fund going to the team’s purpose partners, which the cities will also contribute towards for the first time.

As part of SailGP’s better sport strategy, diversity and inclusion will also be a continued focus for Season 3. The league will continue to give opportunities to female athletes as part of its Women’s Pathway Program – racing onboard the high-speed F50s throughout the season – to accelerate inclusion within the sport and inspire change.

SailGP will also use its community-engagement arm – SailGP Inspire – to introduce young people from diverse backgrounds to the sport and give career opportunities within the wider marine industry.

“When Larry Ellison and I came up with the concept for SailGP, we envisaged a league with the best athletes in the world, racing in equal high-tech boats that are extremely fast, creating exciting, close to shore action, and with a regular season for our fans to truly engage with the sport globally,” said SailGP CEO Sir Russell Coutts.

“We set ourselves a five year goal, but to sit here in Season 3 with ten teams on the start line – including two new franchised teams – an expanded season calendar, an impressive collection of commercial and broadcast partners, purpose and impact at our heart with a positive impact on the environment and an immersive fan experience through our broadcast and gaming offer – I simply couldn’t be happier with what has already been achieved.”

Season 2 of SailGP continues with the Australia Sail Grand Prix in Sydney on December 17 and 18. The season will conclude March 26 and 27 with the SailGP Grand Final in San Francisco, USA.

2022-23 SailGP Season 3 Schedule*
May 14-15, 2022 – Bermuda Sail Grand Prix presented by Hamilton Princess
June 18-19, 2022 – United States Sail Grand Prix | Chicago at Navy Pier
July 30-31, 2022 – Great Britain Sail Grand Prix | Plymouth
August 19-20, 2022 – ROCKWOOL Denmark Sail Grand Prix | Copenhagen
September 10-11, 2022 – France Sail Grand Prix | Saint-Tropez
September 24-25, 2022 – Spain Sail Grand Prix | Andalucía – Cádiz
November 11-12, 2022 – Dubai Sail Grand Prix presented by P&O Marinas
TBD, 2023 – New Zealand Sail Grand Prix | Christchurch

*Further events will be announced to complete Season 3, which will conclude April 2023 and is expected to comprise ten events.

2022-23 Teams, Helm
Australia, Tom Slingsby
Canada, TBA
Denmark, Nicolai Sehested
France, Quentin Delapierre
Great Britain, Ben Ainslie
Japan, Nathan Outteridge
New Zealand, Peter Burling
Spain, Jordi Xammar/ Phil Robertson
Switzerland, Sébastien Schneiter
United States, Jimmy Spithill

SailGP information – Sydney details – Facebook

How to watch – Results – Noticeboard

2021-22 SailGP Season Championship (after 6 events)
1. Australia, 45 pts
2. United States, 44 pts
3. Japan, 44 pts
4. Great Britain, 40 pts
5. New Zealand, 36 pts
6. Spain, 35 pts
7. Denmark, 33 pts
8. France, 31 pts

Format for SailGP events:
• Teams compete in identical F50 catamarans.
• Each event runs across two days.
• There are three races on each day, totaling six races at each event.
• The opening five fleet races involve every team.
• The final match race pits the three highest ranking teams against each other to be crowned event champion.
• The season ends with the Grand Final, which includes the Championship Final Race – a winner-takes-all match race for the $1m prize.

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
December 17-18, 2021 – Australia Grand Prix – Sydney
January 29-30, 2022 – New Zealand Grand Prix – Christchurch (CANCELLED)
March 26-27, 2022 – United States Grand Prix – San Francisco (Season 2 Grand Final)
*Subject to change

2021-22 Teams, Helm
Australia, Tom Slingsby
Denmark, Nicolai Sehested
France, Quentin Delapierre
Great Britain, Ben Ainslie (alternate – Paul Goodison)
Japan, Nathan Outteridge
New Zealand, Peter Burling (alternate – Arnaud Psarofaghis)
Spain, Jordi Xammar (alternate – Phil Robertson)
United States, Jimmy Spithill

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.

Source: SailGP