Good afternoon.
British America's Cup Challenger of Record Athena Racing has announced that it has appointed world-renowned sailor and high-performance executive Ian Walker as the CEO of its challenge for AC38.
Walker is a two-time Olympic silver medallist, a past British America's Cup skipper and winner of the Volvo Ocean Race, and has previously served as performance director for the British Sailing Team and, most recently, CEO of North Sails UK.
He is no stranger to the America’s Cup, having skippered Britain’s Wight Lightning in the 31st America’s Cup in 2003. He has also led three Ocean Race campaigns, culminating in victory in the 2014–15 edition with Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing.
His focus then moved to leading high-performance teams off the water. Walker served as Performance Director for the British Sailing Team, overseeing a hugely successful campaign that saw the team top the sailing medal table at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, winning five medals, including three golds. Following that, he joined North Sails, leading their expert UK sailmaking team for the past three years.
Full details here.
The news of Walker's appointment comes hot on the heels of Ben Ainslie telling the Reuters news agency that details around the funding of his challenge for AC38 will be made public "in the next two to four weeks".
During the Reuters interview Ainslie also hinted at the possibility of an Australian challenge, and suggests the possible return of the Swiss syndicate Alinghi (and – remarkably – maybe even American Magic) for the Naples, Italy event that is scheduled to be held in 2027.
The LA28 Organising Committee has confirmed the event programme and competition framework for the Olympic Sailing Competition at the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games.
The LA28 sailing events will take place from 16 July 2028 to 28 July 2028, showcasing the best of the sport across two iconic Southern California locations with Belmont Shore in the 2028 Venue City of Long Beach staging the board events and the Port of Los Angeles in the Host City of LA hosting the boat events.
Men’s and Women’s Kite will be the first medal decided, on 19 July 2028, followed by Men’s and Women’s Windsurfing the following day.
Men’s and Women’s Dinghy is the opening event of the boat-based events, followed by Mixed Multihull (Nacra 17) and Mixed Dinghy (470). Men’s and Women’s Skiff will be the final medal of the Olympic Sailing Competition to be decided.
More here.
The Star Sailors League (SSL) joins the line-up of the 33rd Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games Thailand 2025), introducing the excitement of the SSL47 keelboat class to one of Asia’s most prestigious multi-sport events. From 15-18 December 2025, teams will battle it out at Ocean Marina Resort, in Chonburi Province, marking a milestone debut for professional-style racing at the region’s largest sporting stage.
As part of the sailing competition’s keelboat category, the SSL47 class will see mixed-gender teams from Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam, the Philippines, and Myanmar compete in a five-race series culminating in a final medal race. Each team will race aboard identical SSL47 one-design boats, ensuring that skill, teamwork, and strategy determine the winners. The event promises close, tactical racing and a new level of excitement for regional audiences.
Details here.
SailGP's Will Carson caught up with Emirates Great Britain skipper Dylan Fletcher for a look back at the team's stellar season performance that sees the Brits top the leaderboard going into the Season 5 Grand Final in Abu Dhabi in two weekends' time.
Meanwhile, Emirates Great Britain SailGP Team strategist Hannah Mills shares her views on the Brits' season – including the way she and Fletcher have gelled since his arrival at the start of this season, as well as the risk of overconfidence – in this excellent interview on the Athena Racing YouTube channel.
Organised by the Vendée Globe team and starting from Les Sables d'Olonne the Vendée Arctique 2026 will be the first solo race in the IMOCA 2025-28 cycle. The race will feature an innovative course configuration in which the skippers will cross the Arctic Circle at a longitude of their choice, offering unprecedented routes and completely free strategies.
Read the full analysis of this unprecedented journey by solo skipper and renowned meteorologist Nicolas Lunven – who finished sixth in the last Vendée Globe – here.
Following fast on the success of the head-turning Wallyrocket 51 is another stunning-looking racing yacht – the Wallyrocket 71. Yachting World magazine takes a closer look.
Quiz Question...
This week's question:
Which yacht won the first-ever Fastnet Race which took place in 1925?
A) Yankee
B) Nirvana
C) Jolie Brise
D) Stormy Weather
Answer in the next newsletter...
Last week's answer:
The first person to complete a single-handed non-stop circumnavigation of the planet was British solo skipper Robin Knox-Johnston. Give yourself a pair of bonus points if you knew he that did it in 1968-69 and aboard Suhalli.
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