High-speed collision between France and New Zealand forces suspension of racing at Auckland SailGP
A shocking high-speed collision between the New Zealand and French F50s on the first day of the SailGP Auckland regatta has forced event organisers to abandon racing.
The crash happened shortly after the start of the third race of the day. Peter Burling’s Black Foils crew lost control of their boat on the first reaching leg of the course when the boat flew too high and went into a sideways slide before rounding up in front of the oncoming DS France team.
With the French travelling at close to 50 knots, helmsman Quentin Delapierre had only a split second to react as he tried to head up to minimise the impact. The bow of the leeward hull of the French boat rode over the windward hull of the New Zealand yacht just in front of the shrouds and daggerboard, scarily close to the front crew cockpit.
Safety teams were quickly in attendance and two sailors were taken ashore and transferred to hospital for assessment. Both were reported to be in a stable condition.