Helen Fretter sat down with Saskia Clark and Hannah Diamond to get insight into last summer\u2019s Women\u2019s America\u2019s Cup, and what the current stasis in the Cup means for women\u2019s sailing, in this weekend long read:October 10, 2024. Puig Women’s America’s Cup, Qualifying – Group A. Athena Pathway – WomenThe Puig Women\u2019s America\u2019s Cup in Barcelona last autumn was a game changer: there had never before been a dedicated women\u2019s competition, or even a dedicated female athlete role, in the America\u2019s Cup.
\nForty-eight female sailors took part in the Women\u2019s America\u2019s Cup, while well over 100 were involved across the 12 Women\u2019s and Youth sailing squads and shore teams.
\nBut after that last race in Barcelona on October 12, when Italy\u2019s Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli defeated Britain\u2019s Athena Pathway in a single match-race shoot out, what has changed for the female sailors who represented their country in Barcelona?
\nOctober 12, 2024. Louis Vuitton 37th America\u2019s Cup, Race Day 1, Mixed Zone. Athena Pathway \u2013 Women, Hannah Diamond
\nI sat down with Athena trimmers Saskia Clark and Hannah Diamond at an event hosted by Musto at their head offices in St Katherine\u2019s Dock, London. It was unusual in that the panel of athletes was nearly all-female \u2013 besides Clark and Diamond, there was Vend\u00e9e Globe skipper Justine Mettraux, the first female and international skipper to finish the 2024\/25 edition, and 49er FX Olympic Gold Medallist Odile van Aarnholt (NED). They were joined by fellow Vend\u00e9e Globe skipper J\u00e9r\u00e9mie Beyou (Vend\u00e9e winner Charlie Dalin was understandably committed elsewhere).
\nImmediately after the Cup wrapped up, some teams, including Athena, announced that they were planning to retain bases in Barcelona, and there was chatter about getting the AC40s back on the water.
\nHowever, the current uncertainly about the future of both the America\u2019s Cup \u2013 with venue and time scale yet to be announced \u2013 and any potential British entry, following the schism between Sir Ben Ainslie and backers INEOS, means that future plans for the Women\u2019s and Youth racing are also in doubt.
\nMomentum lost
\n\u201cThere were some awesome initial plans when we left \u2013 well, kind of over Christmas \u2013 when we were going to get kick started again, which was really exciting. I guess, born of the leadership of Hannah [Mills] and Ben [Ainslie] together, really driving the project forward and not letting it go into that holding pattern,\u201d explains Saskia Clark.
\nAugust 27, 2024. Youth & Women portraits. ATHENA PATHWAY, Saskia Clark, trimmer \u2013 Puig Women\u2019s America\u2019s Cup
\n\u201cSadly, because of what\u2019s happening, we are in a holding pattern.\u201d
\n\u201cBut I think, hopefully, because under Ben sort of moving into that next phase of his career, thinking about his legacy, and then alongside Han [Hannah Mills], who\u2019s obviously high performance in the woman\u2019s field, hopefully, we\u2019re in a good place so that when a button can be pushed, it will be.\u201d
\nBut the loss of momentum is a potential wasted opportunity to capitalise on the gains made by the Women\u2019s teams.
\n\u201cWhen we were there, it was amazing,\u201d says Hannah Diamond. \u201cThere was so much buzz around the event, and it seemed like the sailors really enjoyed it. And also there was quite a big fan base behind it as well.
\n\u201cI think for the America\u2019s Cup, it was a successful event. And I guess now it feels like a few months on, we\u2019re a little bit unsure where it\u2019s going next.
\n\u201cAnd one of the big issues with women\u2019s sailing has been that there\u2019s always a gap between these events. We\u2019ve seen it before. And exposure to those kind of boats racing at that level, the gap gets bigger when you have a big time period.
\n\u201cI think it\u2019s a shame because the feeling around the event at the end of last year was really positive. It really felt like a step forward was taken. But until there\u2019s something to back it up, the most important step was always that it was followed by something.
\n\u201cAnd we still don\u2019t know what that looks like.\u201d
\nWeight of expectation
\nBefore the event, Saskia Clark felt it was important the Women\u2019s America\u2019s Cup delivered a high standard.
\n\u201cLots of people thought it was some of the best racing of the summer. But don\u2019t get me wrong, we were nervous the whole summer.
\n\u201cI think probably one of the biggest weights on my shoulders that I felt, was as a whole collective group of women, all 12 teams, that we didn\u2019t have a total disaster and basically put the project [women\u2019s sailing] back for 10 years. I think all 12 teams stepped up and delivered a really good event.
\nHannah Diamond racing at the Puig Women\u2019s America\u2019s Cup with Athena Pathway
\n\u201cIt was really interesting having it the week after the Youth event, which set a benchmark. I think it\u2019s fair to say we surpassed that, and that was really cool.
\n\u201cBut I still maintain that probably the biggest shift that needs to happen, is the cultural bit of the sport. So that those awesome, amazing athletes, when they go into the big Cup teams, they\u2019re set up to thrive.
\n\u201cRather than feeling the weight of the world is on their shoulder and they\u2019re carrying the hopes and dreams of 50% of the population. That\u2019s too much to ask of one woman, a generation.
\n\u201cWe need to build the numbers so that if for whatever reason it\u2019s not possible for them to carry on \u2013 or, say, carry on for maybe a two-year period because of where you might be in your cycle of life\u00a0\u2013 that there\u2019s another person to step in and take over.
\n\u201cBecause at the moment, we just don\u2019t have the volume of people at that level to be able to just throw someone in there. Hopefully, they thrive. Maybe they crash and burn, and then it\u2019s a dead end. You\u2019re waiting for the next generation superstar to come forward and for the whole cycle to start again.\u201d
\nPutting the hours in
\nSo while the Cup is in stasis, where else can female athletes break through? SailGP has the highest profile, currently mandating one female athlete on each boat.
\n\u201c[SailGP is] 100% the right place to do it because of the regular racing,\u201d points out Diamond. \u201cAnd with the women\u2019s events being so few and far between, one of Sail GP\u2019s goals is to offer that consistency throughout the calendar year and back-to-back seasons where people can make a proper living \u2013 well, a very decent living \u2013 from racing.
\n\u201cBut there needs to be a training facility because currently just the exposure to the equipment is so small and it\u2019s all racing. So I think it is the right environment for that to happen, but there needs to be a training facility, a training boat to be able to up-skill.
\n\u201cI think Martine [Grael, Team Brazil \u2018driver\u2019 and sole female skipper in the league] is doing an amazing job. She nearly won a race at the last weekend, and no doubt she\u2019ll win a lot of races this season. But she\u2019s got a really experienced team with her, and she\u2019s quite an exceptional sailor herself. For that momentum to keep building, the access to equipment needs to be a lot more.\u201d
\n\u201cTo actually make the changes that need to be made, [women sailors need] to get the hours in, because I think it\u2019s widely acknowledged that the F50 is not an easy boat to step into and then put you in a short boundary race course.
\n\u201cWe need to give the boats and the racing the respect that it deserves to give people the time to up-skill to actually make that change.\u201d
\nMartine Grael, driver of Mubadala Brazil SailGP Team, tries out the role of wing trimmer as she works with Anne-Marie Rindom, strategist of ROCKWOOL Denmark SailGP Team, onboard Mubadala Brazil SailGP Team F50 catamaran during the SailGP Womens Performance Camp Delivered by DP World in Dubai, UAE. Tuesday 26 November 2024. Photo: Simon Bruty for SailGP. Handout image supplied by SailGP
\nElite group of women sailors
\nThe other problem with SailGP is that with one woman racing on each boat, the numbers remain very small.
\n\u201cIf you think about SailGP, it\u2019s 12 women right now. I get it\u2019s shifting minds and all that thing, but it\u2019s not enough,\u201d says Clark.
\n\u201cThe Olympic scene is slightly the same. If you think we\u2019ve got 10 classes going to Games, five of them are women. But I did three Olympics, so I took up that [slot].
\n\u201cIt closes out the pathway or the pyramid for a period of time. Trying to keep that pyramid broad and get people in is important.\u201d
\nSaskia Clark and Hannah Mills on their way to Olympic Gold in the 470 class
\nInshore racing route
\nBoth Clark and Diamond see the pro-am keelboat and inshore fleets as areas where women sailors can make a real impact.
\n\u201cI felt like the 48 women in Barcelona made a good show for themselves and everyone put their best foot forward to get those [future] opportunities \u2013\u00a0whether they\u2019re coming through or not, I don\u2019t know,\u201d says Clark.
\n\u201cOne of the really key areas to get more women involved in is that pro owner-driver side of our sport.
\n\u201cIf you think of men in our sport, that is where 70% of the men are working. Through to things like J\/70 inshore racing, where you\u2019re paid a day rate to go sailing. Whether it\u2019s in the Solent or the Med or Garda or wherever.
\n\u201cThe America\u2019s Cup, SailGP, Volvo, Vendee etc \u2013 that\u2019s a very elite section of our sport that are earning a living. The lion\u2019s share of people are earning their living in the owner-pro side. That\u2019s where you make a lot of networks, a lot of connections.
\n\u201cI guess for the younger ones, that\u2019s also where you can earn some money to buy a foiling boat, buy a Moth or whatever it might be, to upskill yourself, to then have some skills to transfer maybe into the super-elite side of our sport.
\n\u201cAnd there\u2019s a whole load of roles that are really not strength-specific. Obviously, on the decision-making side, but also trimming or mid-bow or bow. Really in terms of strength and skill requirements, it\u2019s accessible.
\n\u201cWe just need to get in there because that\u2019s where you build up your network of recommendations for jobs.\u201d
\nDiamond agrees. \u201cI live in Warsash. And in classes like the Cape 31, there\u2019s a lot more female sailors. There\u2019s female sailors on pretty much every boat; people from a strong dinghy background.
\n\u201cThere\u2019s a total weight limit, so having a range of weights can be really useful. That\u2019s organically become like that. It doesn\u2019t need a [women sailors] rule.
\n\u201cAt that pro-am level, I think that\u2019s really positive because the professional end of the sport is still only a small percentage globally of the people that are taking part. It\u2019s really important that the opportunities filter down as well.
\n\u201cThe way those small keelboat classes are allowing those opportunities to come about organically is really important. Those sailors are there on merit and they\u2019re a really valuable member of the crew. Those people will stay involved in the sport.
\n\u201cBut it\u2019s hard when we want things to change really, really fast.
\n\u201cActually, it\u2019s going to take a generation to come through before you see people who plan for their career. I still don\u2019t think that many female sailors think of a career outside of Olympic sailing as a viable option \u2013 when I can vouch that it is.\u201d
\nLeg 4, Melbourne to Hong Kong, day 18, Hannah Diamond grinding in the lively conditions with Tom Johnson on board Vestas 11th Hour. Photo by Amory Ross\/Volvo Ocean Race. 19 January, 2018.
\nOffering value
\nDiamond\u2019s career and skillset is particularly divers: from Olympic campaigning, to short-handed offshore racing, fully crewed ocean racing in the Volvo Ocean Race, through to SailGP \u2013 both as a sailor and coach, and the Women\u2019s\u00a0America\u2019s Cup.
\nShe pointed out that they were not contractually obliged to be at the Musto press event, but she sees sponsor relationships as part of that important skillset.
\n\u201c100% we\u2019re seeing a lot more sponsors want to be involved with female sailors and seeing the value of what we bring.
\n\u201cOne of the things we don\u2019t speak about a lot as female sailors is actually you have to have so many additional skills more than just being a sailor, because in the back of your mind, you\u2019ve got the fact that actually not a lot of people before me have done this.
\n\u201cI look at some of my male counterparts, they wouldn\u2019t maybe engage so much in the feedback, whereas to me, that\u2019s a connection that I can make.
\n\u201cTo see the product development, that\u2019s been quite personal to me because I\u2019ve seen such a difference in the kit that\u2019s come back, which is made for me. That\u2019s a really cool process to be involved with. Whereas when I started, it was a lot more \u2018one-size-fits all\u2019.
\n\u201cI think we see a lot in other sports where [female] athletes are using their voice or their feedback to say, actually, I\u2019ve got this knowledge and this skillset. I can give this back to you and it\u2019s worth something to you. It\u2019s worth something to me.
\n\u201cSo you\u2019ve got that exchange of knowledge and you add value to the industry in that way as well.\u201d<\/p>\n
The post \u201cWe\u2019re in a holding pattern\u201d \u2013 why uncertainty in the America\u2019s Cup is hurting women\u2019s sailing appeared first on Yachting World.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Helen Fretter sat down with Saskia Clark and Hannah Diamond to get insight into last summer\u2019s Women\u2019s America\u2019s Cup, and what the current stasis in the Cup means for women\u2019s sailing, in this weekend long read:October 10, 2024. Puig Women’s … <\/p>\n