Sail GP Review

Western shoot-out

SailGP enjoyed a spectacular West Country welcome in Plymouth as thousands of people gathered to watch the world’s most famous sailors race in the Sound – and what a show they put on

Thousands of fans turned up on Plymouth Hoe, and hundreds of spectator boats lined the F50 racecourse in Plymouth

Sound, for the sold-out Great Britain

Sail Grand Prix.

Tom Slingsby’s Australia SailGP team celebrated its first event victory of this second season of SailGP and meanwhile the local fans were given what they wanted with a race win for the home team.

It was a spectacular weekend of racing in sun-drenched and windier than expected conditions. The natural arena of Plymouth Sound proved the perfect showcase for the exciting F50 fleet and SailGP’s style of short-course racing.

After the opening rounds, the three-boat final in Plymouth was a thriller, between Australia, the US and France. Slingsby said: “We’re now three events in, we’ve had lead changes at each one with different people winning each time, and we’re just starting the rollercoaster. We’ve got plenty more turns ahead.

“We’ve come from close to the top of the leaderboard, to down at the bottom, and now we’re back at the top. There’s no form guide, every team has its day, and we’ve just got to hold on for the ride to try and make that Grand Final in San Francisco next March.”

Celebrating with his Australia crew members was an ecstatic Nick Hutton, the team’s grinder, who hails from Devon. Hutton said: “It’s always great to win and for me it’s extra special winning in Plymouth. It’s as close as I’m ever going to get to racing at home so I’m super happy. The last race was very hectic for us, we didn’t make it easy for ourselves, but it was great to get it done.”

The French team – driven by Billy Besson and with Brit Leigh McMillan onboard – was always in the hunt over the weekend and never out of the top three. After a nail-biting final race that saw multiple lead changes they eventually took silver.

Jimmy Spithill’s United States SailGP team was third overall, coming back from a disappointing start to the season, in which they sustained damage to their F50 in both events to date. Spithill said: “It was a good day because we made the final race again but unfortunately we had a bit of a technical issue on our starboard rudder that was deteriorating throughout the day. It was a good result for the team, given what had happened in the first two events.”

While the British could not qualify for the final podium race in front of its home fans, interim driver Goodison earned the loudest cheer of the day when his team crossed the finish line to win the

ABOVE

The atmosphere around the Sound was buzzing, with people gathering course-side on their own boats and on the Hoe; viewing areas and spectator boats were sold to half capacity for Covid precautions

BELOW (L-R)

Conditions were windier than expected, giving the F50s plenty of breeze to lift off and get up to speed; Jimmy Spithill’s USA team head on

fifth race of the weekend. Goodison, in his final event driving the British F50 before Ben Ainslie’s return to the wheel, signed off his SailGP stint with a fourth-place finish in Plymouth.

Goodison said: “That was a special day. It felt fantastic to cross the finish line in first place in front of our brilliant home support at the end. There was a lot of pressure to perform after yesterday and it was really impressive how the whole team rallied. There were so many positive vibes going out there this morning and then seeing all the fans and hearing all the noise coming from them on the water was just incredible.

“The team sailed very well. There are a bunch of really talented athletes on the boat and the team in the chase boat were incredibly supportive. For me, it’s been a great pleasure to have been involved in this team and I’m just thankful that we’ve given it back to Ben in a similar shape to what I took it off him. That’s a big relief.”

The British team was joined by four female triallists, as part of an initiative to integrate female sailors into the crews. Ellie Aldridge, Nicola Boniface, Hannah Diamond and Emily Nagel spent time on board. Olympians Hannah Mills and Anna Burnet trialled previously.

Emily Nagel, who was previously a Data Analyst with the Great Britain SailGP Team, said: “For me it’s a brilliant initiative. I initially got involved in SailGP because I wanted to one day be a sailor on board. It’s not easy as a female sailor to get a lot of opportunities sometimes, especially in the world of foiling. SailGP is creating these opportunities for women to get this experience, so I am grabbing this opportunity with both hands and hoping at the end of the day I manage to get the role, but there’s some very tough competition.”

After the event, leader of Plymouth City Council, Councillor Nick Kelly, said: “All I can say is - wow! What an absolutely incredible weekend in Britain’s Ocean City. The atmosphere along the waterfront was electric and Plymouth Sound really has made a fantastic stage for the Great Britain Sail Grand Prix. Not only that, but the week leading up to SailGP has seen so many people in Plymouth getting involved and engaging with the ocean, including STEM sessions for school children and free sailing experiences for young people and people with disabilities, which is amazing.”

SailGP CEO Sir Russell Coutts said: “The crowds were loving it. I went for a walk during the race to see what the reaction was and they were really engaged. I think Plymouth should be really proud of the event here. They really did deliver a magnificent event. One that I will certainly remember for a long time.”

ABOVE (L-R) AND OPPOSITE

Spectacular foiling action from the Australian team with Tom Slingsby at the helm; there was no lack of home support for the GB SailGP team

BELOW

Take-off for the Spanish team; the champagne goes pop for the winning Aussies, who are aiming to defend their title from 2019 and who boast local Plymouth man Nick Hutton on board

SailGP season 2 championship leaderboard after 3 events

1 Australia 22 pts 2 Great Britain 22 pts 3 France 21 pts 4 United States 19 pts 5 Japan 19 pts 6 Spain 19 pts 7 Denmark 17 pts 8 New Zealand 17 pts