SailGP resumes fourth season in Europe

The third installment of Season 4 for SailGP brings ten teams to the France Sail Grand Prix taking place in Saint-Tropez on September 9-10.

The F50 fleet will go head to head for five qualifying fleet races with the top three-boat to face off in a winner-takes-all Final for the largest share of the $300,00.00USD event purse.

Light wind conditions are forecast, meaning the F50s are likely to be fitted with the largest 29m wing and light air foils – there’s even a possibility of reduced crews.

All eyes will be on home team France, which has had a slow start to the season and currently sits in 8th on the overall Championship leaderboard. But France will be trailing a new flight controller in Saint-Tropez, as Jason Saunders has transferred from the Swiss team.

Could this mark a turnaround for Quentin Delapierre’s team, or will limited training time with their new crew member prove detrimental to the performance of Les Bleus?

Jimmy Spithill’s United States marked its first and only Season 3 win in Saint-Tropez last season, beating New Zealand and Emirates Great Britain in the Final. But since then, the team’s performance has lagged and the Americans haven’t come close to the podium again. Could Saint-Tropez host the team’s long awaited comeback?

Elsewhere, Spain will be looking to repeat their historic victory in Los Angeles while Australia, at the top of the season leaderboard, will be looking to extend his lead over the wider F50 fleet.

Saint-Tropez also offers the chance for Ben Ainslie’s Emirates Great Britain to gain a foothold in the new season, while Peter Burling’s New Zealand – runner up in the Season 3 Championship – will be eyeing an improved performance to pull the team up from its current 5th place position.

The France Sail Grand Prix | Saint Tropez will take place on September 9-10, with racing scheduled between 1:30pm-3:00pm CEST (7:30am-9:00am EDT).

SailGP information – Saint-Tropez details – YouTube – How to watch

Season Standings (after two of 12 events; results and total points)
1. Australia (Tom Slingsby), 2-3; 17 points
2. Spain (Diego Botin), 5-1; 16
3. Denmark (Nicolai Sehested), 4-2; 16
4. Canada (Phil Robertson), 3-4; 15
5. New Zealand (Peter Burling), 1-7; 14
6. Great Britain (Ben Ainslie), 7-6; 9
7. United States (Jimmy Spithill), 9-5; 8
8. France (Quintin Delapierre), 6-8; 8
9. Switzerland (Sebastien Schneiter), 8-9; 5
10. Germany (Erik Heil), 10-10; 0

Season 4 – 2023
June 16-17 – Rolex United States Sail Grand Prix | Chicago at Navy Pier
July 22-23 – United States Sail Grand Prix | Los Angeles
September 9-10 – France Sail Grand Prix | Saint-Tropez
September 23-24 – Italy Sail Grand Prix | Taranto
October 14-15 – Spain Sail Grand Prix | Andalucía- Cádiz

Season 4 – 2024
January 13-14 – UAE Sail Grand Prix | Venue to be announced
February 24-25 – KPMG Australia Sail Grand Prix | Sydney
March 23-24 – ITM New Zealand Sail Grand Prix | Auckland
May 4-5 – Bermuda Sail Grand Prix
June 1-2 – Canada Sail Grand Prix | Venue to be announced
June 22-23 – United States Sail Grand Prix | New York
July 13-14 – SailGP Season 4 Grand Final | San Francisco

Format for Season 4:
• Teams compete in identical F50 catamarans.
• Each event runs across two days.
• Up to seven qualifying fleet races of approximately 15 minutes may be scheduled for each regatta.
• The top three teams from qualifying advance to a final race to be crowned event champion and earn the largest share of the $300,000.00 USD event prize money purse that’s divided among the top three teams.
• The season ends with the Grand Final, which includes the Championship Final Race for the top three teams in the season standing with the winner claiming the $1m USD prize.

For competition documents, click here.

Established in 2018, SailGP seeks to be an annual, global sports league featuring fan-centric inshore racing among national teams in some of the iconic harbors around the globe.