Give the people what they want

by Craig Leweck, Scuttlebutt Sailing News
I have said that sailing gained broadcast viewership by shortening its skirt. The 2013 America’s Cup was designed for the camera. The boats got sexier. Faster and cooler turns head, and danger does too.

All the lessons learned from the ensuing editions was packaged as SailGP, and now World Sailing has been fiddling with the Olympic program to heighten spectator appeal. Cooler boats, dramatic formats. The skirt keeps getting shorter.

While the integrity of the sport may be getting lost in the shuffle, another initiative wasn’t so eager to ride that slippery slope.

On the face of it, Grand Slam Track should have worked. The brainchild of Michael Johnson, the four-time Olympic gold medal sprinter, the initiative was designed to give track and field a regular season narrative. But poor crowds plagued its 2025 debut and in January this year, GTS filed for bankruptcy.

If only they’d shortened its skirt.

To read how SailGP evolved, generating in 2025 more than US$200 million in revenue with an average 18 million television viewers per race, click here.