Cities shortlisted for CAN SailGP venue

(June 7, 2022) – The most exciting racing on water could be coming to Canada in 2023/2024 as part of SailGP Season 4. Following a very competitive domestic bid process, with interest from over ten potential host cities, SailGP has announced that the following four cities are on the short list:

Halifax, Nova Scotia
Kingston, Ontario
Montreal, Quebec
Victoria, British Columbia

A SailGP event in Canada would place the successful host city on the world stage attracting visitors from around the globe and across the country. It would also generate significant economic impact, enliven the sailing community and produce international media coverage that would elevate the host city as an iconic waterfront destination alongside San Francisco, Saint-Tropez, Sydney and Copenhagen which are currently part of the world tour.

Sir Russell Coutts, CEO of SailGP, said, “It’s a great testament to the impressive growth of our championship to see so much interest from coast to coast in hosting the first Canada Sail Grand Prix event. We’re already seeing incredible support for the Canadian team after just one event, from fans all over the globe. Having personally enjoyed racing in Canada on a number of occasions, I know that Canada is a nation with a passion for high level sport and I look forward to what should become an outstanding annual event on our championship calendar.”

For Fred Pye, Founder of the Canada SailGP Team, hosting an event in Canada would have a generational impact on the sport. “Our vision is to create a catalyst for the growth and fan accessibility of the sport of sailing in Canada. Bringing a SailGP event to Canada for the first time, on home waters, would be an extraordinary experience for Canadian fans and our athletes.”

Canada SailGP Team is an independent team that joined SailGP at the beginning of Season 3. The team and its partners are committed to being a catalyst for the growth of the sport of sailing in Canada and creating a pathway for athletes to proudly represent Canada through the We CAN Inspire and We CAN Foil programs. Together with Race For The Future partner, Ocean Wise, the team is also working to protect, conserve and restore the world’s ocean as part of it’s commitment to the SailGP Impact League.

The shortlisted host cities will attend the SailGP event in Chicago. The selection process will draw to a close in late October, giving the winning city time to prepare for the event in 2023/2024.

Following on from a podium finish in the team’s inaugural event in Bermuda last month, the Canada SailGP Team will compete next in the United States Sail Grand Prix Chicago at Navy Pier on June 18-19.

SailGP information – Season 3 scoreboard – Facebook – How to watch

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 18-19, 2022 – ROCKWOOL Denmark Sail Grand Prix | Copenhagen
September 9-10, 2022 – France Sail Grand Prix | Saint-Tropez
September 23-24, 2022 – Spain Sail Grand Prix | Andalucía – Cádiz
November 11-12, 2022 – Dubai Sail Grand Prix presented by P&O Marinas
January 14-15, 2023 – Singapore Sail Grand Prix
March 17-18, 2023 – New Zealand Sail Grand Prix | Christchurch
May 6-7, 2023 – United States Sail Grand Prix | San Francisco (Season 3 Grand Final)
*One further event is expected to be announced to complete SailGP Season 3.

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

Format for 2022-23 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 and earn the largest share of the $300,000 prize money to be split among the top three teams.
• The season ends with the Grand Final, which includes the Championship Final Race – a winner-takes-all match race for the $1m prize.

For competition documents, click here.

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 for event prize money as the season culminates with a $1 million winner-takes-all match race.

Source: SailGP