The Swiss-flagged America’s Cup team, Alinghi Red Bull Racing has named the key members of their sailing squad as they gear up for the 37th America’s CupAmerica\u2019s Cup team Alinghi Red Bull Racing has named the key members of their sailing team as the Swiss-flagged squad prepares their challenge for the 37th America\u2019s Cup, which will take place in Barcelona, Spain in 2024.
\nThe Ernesto Bertarelli-backed Alinghi racing team officially announced that they would be entering the 37th America\u2019s Cup in December 2021, after months of speculation. Their entry marks a return of the two-time America\u2019s Cup-winning Alinghi team after over a decade out of the competition.
\nAt the same time Alinghi also announced that they would be teaming up with F1 team, Red Bull Racing, forming the America\u2019s Cup team Alinghi Red Bull Racing. This partnership follows Challenger of Record for the 37th America\u2019s Cup, INEOS Britannia pairing up with the Mercedes F1 team \u2013 a clear signal of how hyper-technologically advanced this new period of America\u2019s Cup sailing is in the complex foiling monohull, AC75 class.
\nAhead of their official entry announcement, there had been speculation as to which club Alinghi would represent, as the America\u2019s Cup 100 % nationality rule confirmed in the Protocol for the 37th America\u2019s Cup requires all sailors to be passport holders of the nation they represent, thus limiting the ability to buy overseas talent into the land-locked country.
\nHowever, in that initial statement of entry, it was confirmed that they will once again represent the Soci\u00e9t\u00e9 Nautique de Gen\u00e8ve, requiring all the team to be Swiss, and the team\u2019s AC75 to be built in Switzerland.
\nThe last time Alinghi were in an America\u2019s Cup competition was the 2010 Deed of Gift match when their huge catamaran was defeated by Oracle Team USA\u2019s wing-sailed trimaran. Photo: Jose Delgado \/ Alinghi
\nNow, after many months of waiting, the team has revealed their key lineup of sailors who will be tasked with getting to grips with the AC75 foiling monohull in their bid to win the most sought after trophy in sailing.
\nThe team includes a number of sailors who are, whilst not exactly household names, familiar to those with an interest in high performance racing. However, many of the crew will also be unfamiliar to Cup fans.
\nThis Alinghi team is one based on building home grown, emerging talent \u2013 a very different proposition to the 2003 campaign when Alinghi famously poached many of Team New Zealand\u2019s talented sailors.
\nHeading up the group \u2013 and likely to be responsible for helming the team\u2019s AC75 in one way or another (teams may follow the route taken by Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli in the 36th America\u2019s Cup and have dual port tack and starboard tack helmsmen) is Arnaud Psarofaghis. Psarofaghis is a very experienced foiling sailor who has competed in everything from foiling Moths to SailGP and the foiling GC32 circuit \u2013 and has previously been involved with French America\u2019s Cup project, Groupama Team France.
\nThe team is nominally divided into two categories, the \u2018driving group\u2019 and \u2018power group\u2019. This split reflects the dual needs of a sailing team in the modern Cup era, as the possibility of cyclors (as developed by Emirates Team New Zealand for their 2017 America\u2019s Cup win) may return for this Cup competition.
\nThe \u2018driving group\u2019 will be responsible for roles like helm, tactics, flight control, sail trim etc. while the \u2018power group\u2019 will be generating the power needed to trim foils and sails either on cyclor-style or traditional pedestal winch grinding stations.
\nThe Alinghi Red Bull Racing sailing team. Photo: Alinghi Red Bull Racing
\nThe Alinghi Red Bull Racing team are:
\nDriving group:
\nMaxime Bachelin
\nMatias B\u00fchler
\nNicolas Charbonnier
\nLucien Cujean
\nYves Detrey
\nAugustin Maillefer
\nBryan Mettraux
\nArnaud Psarofaghis
\nPower group:
\nArthur Cevey
\nBarnab\u00e9 Delarze
\nNicolas Rolaz
\nTh\u00e9ry Schir
\nNils Theuninck
\nFlorian Tr\u00fcb
\nThese are crew members who Psarofaghis \u2013 who\u2019s been at the heart of the project and heavily involved in recruitment \u2013 knows well. \u201cGoing on this adventure with friends I\u2019ve known since childhood and people I\u2019ve been working with for over 20 years is very exciting,\u201d the 33-year-old said. \u201cEven if I haven\u2019t necessarily sailed with them, this bond is a great advantage.
\n\u201cWe understand each other, which will make communication so much easier. And that\u2019s vital, because on board, good communication is key. And off the boat too: we know when one of us is going through a rough patch, how to talk with them, and when\u2026 The only thing that counts is performance, and it\u2019s with this in mind that the teams will be put together.\u201d
\n\u201cIt wasn\u2019t an easy choice, we\u2019re lucky to have excellent potential in Switzerland,\u201d head coach Nils Frei explained. He\u2019s the one who conducted the recruitment jointly with Pierre-Yves Jorand, co-general manager in charge of sports operations. The first sailors who were chosen contributed to the decision-making. \u201cCharacter, attitude and development potential are as important as skill,\u201d Jorand adds.
\nArticle continues below<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\tAlinghi teams up with Red Bull Racing F1 for 37th America\u2019s Cup<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\tSwiss sailing team Alinghi has confirmed that it is entering the 37th America\u2019s Cup, in a new team partnership as\u2026<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\tEverything you need to know about the 37th America\u2019s Cup<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\tFollow the build-up to the 37th America\u2019s Cup as the teams prepare to fight it out for the oldest sporting\u2026<\/p>\n
The team does acknowledge the limited Cup experience of the group in their announcement, stating that:
\nHowever talented they are, these sailors have had no experience in the America\u2019s Cup yet. A high-level training schedule has therefore been put in place on the water with renowned coaches and internationally recognised designers.
\nReflecting the physical needs of a sailing team in the modern America\u2019s Cup it is a very youthful team, with the youngest member being 22 year old Nicolas Rolaz \u2013 who won the junior class Optimist World Championship as recently as 2014.
\nSince coming out of the Cup competition, following their defeat to Oracle USA in the 2010 Deed of Gift match, the Alinghi team has since been competing at Swiss lake events, including the T35 circuit.
\nBertarelli points out the team has been sailing in fast and foiling boats, with a young Swiss team so does not consider their relative lack of Cup experience to be an issue. \u201cWe expected the [100% nationality] rule, and we\u2019re ready,\u201d he says as the team gears up to challenge for another America\u2019s Cup cycle.<\/p>\n
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The Swiss-flagged America’s Cup team, Alinghi Red Bull Racing has named the key members of their sailing squad as they gear up for the 37th America’s CupAmerica\u2019s Cup team Alinghi Red Bull Racing has named the key members of their … <\/p>\n