SailGP: New color, similar roster for USA

With the fifth season of SailGP set to begin in the Middle East on November 23-24, the United States SailGP Team has a new color. Gone is the traditional flag blue, replaced by the blue-green tone of the Statue of Liberty.

“The Statue of Liberty is a legendary American landmark, representing hope, freedom, and opportunity,” said Mike Buckley, Team CEO and Co-Owner. “Drawing inspiration from this iconic symbol was important to us in our creative process, as we want to be an example that inspires a new generation of dreamers and brings a more diverse range of people into the world of sailing. Just like Lady Liberty did in New York Harbor all those years ago.”

The U.S. SailGP Team has the majority of its lineup returning for the 2024-25 Season including 7x World Champion Taylor Canfield (driver), Olympic Athlete & Pan-American Games gold medalist Anna Weis (grinder/ jib trimmer), 3x World Champion Jeremy Wilmot (wing trimmer), World Champion Peter Kinney (grinder), 2x World Champion Mac Agnese (flight controller/ grinder), and 2x World Champion Mike Buckley (strategist).

Also joining the team is flight controller Hans Henken who is stepping back on board the F50 after almost a year away from the Championship.

Henken rejoins the American roster as flight controller – a position he previously held under former driver Jimmy Spithill in Seasons 3 and 4. Henken was also a grinder in Season 1 with the team’s first driver Rome Kirby, and in Season 2 when Spithill took over the team.

Henken left the team after an injury in Season 4’s Taranto event when he was knocked unconscious during a dramatic nosedive, needing recovery time for his Olympic campaign in which he won bronze at the Paris 2024 Olympics.

With the addition of Henken, the U.S. SailGP Team roster now boasts a combined 15 World Championships, 2 Olympians, and an Olympic Bronze Medal. The team has a fully American roster racing under the U.S. flag.

Twelve Teams for Season 5
• Australia
• Brazil
• Canada
• Denmark
• France
• Germany
• Great Britain
• Italy
• New Zealand*
• Spain*
• Switzerland
• United States
* League funded teams

SailGP information – YouTube – Facebook

Season 5 Schedule – 14 events
2024
November 23-24 – Dubai, UAE

2025
January 18-19 – Auckland, New Zealand
February 8-9 – Sydney, Australia
March 15-16 – Los Angeles, USA
March 22-26 – San Francisco, USA
May 3-4 – Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
June 7-8 – New York City, USA
July 19-20 – Portsmouth, Great Britain
August 16-17 – Sassnitz, Germany
September 6-7 – Taranto, Italy
September 20-21 – Geneva, Switzerland
October 4-5 – Andalucía – Cádiz, Spain
November 7-8 – Middle East *
November 29-30 – Grand Final – Abu Dhabi, UAE
* Venue to be announced

Format for Season 5:
• Teams compete in identical F50 catamarans.
• Each event runs across two days.
• Five 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 prize purse (amount not confirmed; Season 4 had $400,000.00 USD prize purse with winning team earning $200k at each event).
• 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 a monetary award (amount not confirmed; Season 4 had $2 million USD prize).
• The top team on points ahead of the three-boat Championship Final will get a monetary award (amount not confirmed; Season 4 had a $350,000.00 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.

Source: SailGP, SSN