Crew set for UpWind by MerConcept

The UpWind by MerConcept project begins in 2024 with this new racing program seeking to provide female sailors with racing opportunities at the highest levels of the sport. Francesca Clapcich, two time Olympian and the only Italian to win The Ocean Race, will lead the team in the Ocean Fifty offshore trimaran circuit in a multi-event series.

Following an application stage, Clapcich now has her crew as she explains in this update on April 19, 2024:

I’m sitting here the day after the night before when we chose the first squad for the inaugural season of racing as UpWind by MerConcept. I’m equally exhausted and excited, and so ready to get sailing with an awesome group of talented sailors on our Ocean Fifty.

It was a really busy week with 12 candidates (of the 16 who were shortlisted) here in Concarneau, Brittany, France, at MerConcept’s headquarters. This selection process has been high pressure for the athletes, with multiple tests – physical, mental, technical knowledge, and performance – and they have been under continual assessment and observation by some of the biggest names of the sport including François Gabart, Sally Barkow (my wife!), and Tom Laperche.

It was a real privilege to watch this group of athletes come together – from as far afield as South Africa to Belgium, the USA to India – in competition with each other, but they quickly gelled as a team. There was so much energy, encouragement, and support for each other – I was blown away.

It was so hard for the jury to pick the final team so we actually chose seven sailors rather than the original plan of six. This first squad for UpWind by MerConcept is a mix of more established athletes joined by emerging talent who will benefit from being surrounded and supported by the whole MerConcept team, one of the most experienced technical and performance organizations in the sport.

A huge congratulations to Lisa Farthofer (AUT), Anne-Claire Le Berre (FRA), Elodie Mettraux (SUI), Thiphaine Ragueneau (FRA), Michaela Robinson (RSA), Sara Stone (USA), and Arianne van de Loosdrecht (NED) – I’m looking forward to getting on the water and sailing with you all.

My message to the sailors who didn’t make the squad this year, is to not give up. Use this selection process as an opportunity to learn, grow. and come back hungrier and stronger next time.

This isn’t a one season project – this is the start of something continuous and there are going to be plenty more opportunities for you. With MerConcept and 11th Hour Racing, we are developing a network so we can share with other teams and organizations the CVs, references, and contacts so together we can be driving this need for more equity in our sport.

I feel the privilege of having an amazing sponsor in 11th Hour Racing and to be working in partnership with an incredible organization like MerConcept. To be in a team and racing competitively, while also developing the skills and talents of female sailors so they too can be racing at the highest levels of the sport, brings together two great passions of mine. This is just the beginning – I can’t wait to see where we get to in the coming months and years.

I have one more week here in Concarneau, working with our Ocean Fifty Boat Captain Fin Clark, sailing and testing the systems before I head back home for more physio on my knee. The first Ocean Fifty series Act is at the end of May so not much time before I’m back here and getting ready to race.

The five-Act 2024 season of the Ocean Fifty Series includes an east/west transatlantic race, three Grand Prix events, and one Mediterranean crossing.

Source: UpWind by MerConcept