Lisa Darmanin: Living in the moment
Published on October 3rd, 2024
As a SailGP commentator and presenter, Olympic medalist Lisa Darmanin has an approachable, casual style, a way of educating and entertaining her broadcast viewers and bringing them along for the sailboat ride.
But when the Women’s America’s Cup gets underway October 5, she will be in front of the TV cameras as starboard trimmer for the Australian team.
“I love learning,” she says. “I think the biggest thing I’ve learned with my journey is I never imagined that I was going to be an Olympian, and I never thought that I would be able to present to millions around the world about sailing on camera. I just took every opportunity, and then I worked hard.
“You must have some level of talent, but hard work beats talent every moment of the day. I always say you must believe in yourself because no one can do that for you. It’s hard to dream big, but don’t be scared.”
Lisa views the Women’s America’s Cup as a massive opportunity to upskill elite female sailors so that the pool of experienced drivers and trimmers in the AC40 and AC75 classes will include both men and women. The Women’s America’s Cup will give AC40 experience to twelve teams of four women and backups each, adding 50 – 60 women to the pool.
“What we all want is for this Women’s America’s Cup to upskill a lot of women and see Cup teams mix in the future, which is the way things should be as they normalize,” explains Lisa. “I don’t think there’s a barrier to a woman being on a Cup team right now except obviously the cycling power.
“There’re still four sailing positions on the boat that can be done as well no matter what your gender. We are all just sailors so can learn from each other. I think right now experience is obviously the barrier, but you get experience by being exposed to the AC40 through the Women’s America’s Cup.
“I just hope that that this will translate to more opportunities for women beyond just the Women’s America’s Cup. When the Cup teams are looking at talent and want to foster new talent, they can look at women because they have experience and that’s what this opportunity is about. The Youth America’s Cup is called a feeder for the Cup. I think the Women’s America’s Cup should be a feeder to the Cup as well.”
Lisa has much experience trimming foiling boats in the Olympic Nacra class. But like her Australian teammates, most of Lisa’s training for the Women’s America’s Cup has not been on the actual AC40 boats, but on AC40 simulators.
“I wake up in the middle of the night thinking about how to get over that wave! We were lucky enough to be able to borrow an AC40 at the end of August and got about two hours on it. Just to go sailing was amazing — to have that feel — like it’s quite overwhelming to feel the different forces and knowing how the boat is responding.”
How close is the simulator to the actual boat?
“I think for drivers it’s very translatable. The simulator is obviously way more forgiving than on the water — if you capsize you just click reset and you’re good to go!
“But for the trimmer, it’s quite hard to trim in a simulator because you don’t have a sail to look at and you have no feel of heel or acceleration. I’m always trying to think one step ahead. Is the heel trending up or down? Is the boat accelerating or slowing? On the water, I listen to the boat, and it tells me what it needs.”
As for what happens after the event, Lisa is existential. “I supposed it depends on who wins the Cup. I’m just trying to take this opportunity now to learn as much as possible and see what happens next. All of us women sailors are living in the moment. The moment is now. It’s so exciting; it’s such an incredible crossroads.”
Jan Pehrson is a sailing photojournalist who spends summers in San Francisco, California and winters in St. Pete Beach, Florida. As a racing and cruising sailor and Coast Guard licensed skipper, Jan’s familiarity with sailing and the sailing community lends an in-depth element to her prolific array of photographs and articles. Contact her at www.janpehrson.com
Viewing details – Race information – Results – Weather forecast
Following the publication of the AC37 Protocol and AC75 Class Rule on November 17, 2021, the AC75 Class Rule and AC Technical Regulations were finalized on March 17, 2022. The entry period was from December 1, 2021 until July 31, 2022, but late entries for the 37th America’s Cup could be accepted until May 31, 2023. The Defender was to announce the Match Venue on September 17, 2021 but postponed the reveal, finally confirming Barcelona on March 30, 2022. The 37th America’s Cup begins October 12, 2024.
Teams revealed to challenge defender Emirates Team New Zealand (NZL):
• INEOS Britannia (GBR)
• Alinghi Red Bull Racing (SUI)
• Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli Team (ITA)
• NYYC American Magic (USA)
• Orient Express Racing Team (FRA)
2023-24 Preliminary Regattas
September 14-17, 2023 (AC40): Vilanova i la Geltrú, Spain
November 30-December 2 (AC40): Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
August 22-25, 2024 (AC75): Barcelona, Spain
2024 Louis Vuitton Cup Challenger Selection Series*
August 29-September 9: Double Round Robin
September 14-19: Semi Finals (Best of 9)
September 26-October 7: Finals (Best of 13)
*Team New Zealand competes in the round robin stage only, but the results of their races were not included in the challenger leaderboard.
2024 America’s Cup
October 12-27: 37th Match (Best of 13)
For competition details, click here.
Additionally, 12 teams will compete in the Youth America’s Cup and Women’s America’s Cup.
Noticeboard: https://ac37noticeboard.acofficials.org/
Event details: www.americascup.com/en/home