2021–22 SailGP championship

The 2021–22 SailGP Championship was the second season of the SailGP championship. Originally due to be contested in 2020, the season was postponed to 2021 after the first round in Sydney due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic[1] and was then extended into the early months of 2022.

2021–22 SailGP Championship
New Zealand SailGP Team competing in the United States Grand Prix in March 2022 on San Francisco Bay.
Event title
Name2021–22 SailGP Championship
DatesApril 23, 2021[a] to March 27, 2022
YachtsF50
Results
WinnerAustralia Australia
Impact LeagueNew Zealand New Zealand
← 2019

The championship was again won by the Australian team. New Zealand was the inaugural winner of the Impact League.

Entries

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Team Helmsman Rounds
  Australia SailGP Team   Tom Slingsby 1–8
  Denmark SailGP Team presented by ROCKWOOL   Nicolai Sehested 1–8
  France SailGP Team   Billy Besson 1–5
  Quentin Delapierre 6–8
  •   Great Britain SailGP Team presented by INEOS[b]
  •   Great Britain SailGP Team
  Ben Ainslie 1, 4–8
  Paul Goodison 2–3
  Japan SailGP Team   Nathan Outteridge 1–8
  New Zealand SailGP Team   Peter Burling 1, 4–8
  Arnaud Psarofaghis 2–3
  Spain SailGP Team   Phil Robertson 1–7
  Jordi Xammar 8
  United States SailGP Team   Rome Kirby None[c]
  Jimmy Spithill 1–8
Citations:[3][4][5][6][7][8]

Team changes

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After only one season, China left the championship.[9] Denmark and Spain joined the championship in Sydney,[10][11] while New Zealand entered in Bermuda.[4]

Calendar

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Rnd Host Title Dates Winning team
[d]   Sydney, Australia Sydney Sail Grand Prix February 28–29, 2020   Great Britain
1   Bermuda Bermuda Sail Grand Prix presented by Hamilton Princess April 23–25, 2021[a]   Great Britain
[e]   New York City, USA New York Sail Grand Prix June 4–5, 2021 Removed
2   Taranto, Italy Italy Sail Grand Prix | Taranto June 5–6, 2021   Japan
3   Plymouth, England[f] Great Britain Sail Grand Prix | Plymouth July 17–18, 2021   Australia
4   Aarhus, Denmark[g] ROCKWOOL Denmark Sail Grand Prix | Aarhus August 20–21, 2021   Australia
5   Saint-Tropez, France France Sail Grand Prix | Saint-Tropez September 11–12, 2021   Japan
6   Cádiz, Spain Spain Sail Grand Prix | Andalucía - Cádiz October 9–10, 2021   Australia
7   Sydney, Australia Australia Sail Grand Prix | Sydney presented by KPMG December 17–18, 2021   Australia
[h]   Christchurch, New Zealand New Zealand Sail Grand Prix January 29–30, 2022 Removed
8   San Francisco, USA Mubadala United States Sail Grand Prix | San Francisco March 26–27, 2022   Australia
Citations:[1][3][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20]

Although the opening round in Sydney proceeded as planned, results from the race were declared void upon the postponement of the season until 2021.[1] Nine races were expected in the expanded calendar,[21] and eight were announced[17] before the addition of a new Sydney round.[19] The New Zealand event was removed after organisers were denied permission to enter the country.[20]

Season

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Sydney

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The season originally began in Sydney with new teams Spain and Denmark joining, with the former coming second in several fleet races. The British team dominated the opening round ahead of 2019 champions Australia[22] and led the standings 47 to 42 points, with Japan in third on 39 points.[23] Both Spain and Denmark received penalties, Spain for contact with the French boat and Denmark for a rule infringement.[23] However, the eventual postponement of the season to 2021–22 reset the standings.[24]

Results

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Pos Team  
SYD[d]
Points
1 2 3 4 5 F
1   Great Britain 1 1 1 1 4 1 47
2   Australia 2 3 5 2 1 2 42
3   Japan 3 4 3 3 3 39
4   Spain 5 2 2 4 2 31
5   United States 4 6 4 5 5 31
6   Denmark 7 5 6 7 6 22
7   France 6 DNS DNS 6 7 14
Citation:[23]
Key
Colour Result
1 Winner
2 Second place
3 Third place
4–7 Finish
DNF Did not finish
DNS Did not start
DSQ Disqualified
WH Withheld from racing
C Race cancelled

Round 1: Bermuda

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New Zealand joined the resumed season in Bermuda, where the first day of racing was brought forward to the Friday to avoid poor conditions on Saturday.[12] The Australian team won the first three races, with Britain finishing farther back in the field in the first two races while being penalised in the first race for cutting off the US team.[25] Japan heavily collided with the US in the fourth race which the British team ultimately won, while the Australians won the fifth. Neither the US nor Japan finished race four and neither started race five.[26] This meant that Australia, Great Britain and France progressed to the final, which Britain won.[27]

Round 2: Taranto

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The Italian SailGP saw the introduction of harsher penalties for teams involved in collisions after the incident involving the US and Japanese teams in Bermuda.[28] The Australian team suffered hydraulic failure in the first race and retired. The US team won the first and third fleet races with Japan winning the second. On the second day, New Zealand won the fourth fleet race while Japan won the fifth fleet race.[29] The US, Japan, and Spain qualified for the final, which Japan won. This was the first SailGP final the Australian team did not qualify for. During the final, the US suffered an impact with a submerged object in the water which damaged their rudder, causing it to break down.[29][30][31]

Round 3: Plymouth

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Most teams competed with substitute sailors at the Plymouth regatta due to 2020 Summer Olympics commitments. The first two races were won by the Australian team. In the third race, the US team narrowly avoided a collision with the Spanish boat at the race start. Spain was disqualified for the manoeuvre, the first time any competitor had been disqualified in the championship.[31] The US went on to win the third race.[32] Japan won the fourth fleet race and Great Britain the fifth, leaving France, the US, and Australia to compete in the final. Australia won the event, moving them to first place in the championship, drawn on points with Great Britain.[33]

Round 4: Aarhus

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Spain capsized their F50 before the first fleet race and sustained significant damage to the boat's foil. As a result, they did not compete in the first day's races. Denmark won the first fleet race, taking their first victory in the series at their home event. The second fleet race was won by the US team, and the third by the UK. Japan won the fourth and fifth, and were joined by Australia and the UK for the final. Australia won the final race, their second victory of the season.

Round 5: Saint-Tropez

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Great Britain won the first fleet race for the French round, with the US winning the next two. Championship leader Australia suffered hydraulic and electrical failures and consistently finished in the last few positions.[34] Japan won the fourth race and Denmark the fifth, with the former also winning the final to take the championship lead.[35]

Round 6: Cádiz

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The first fleet race was won by Great Britain, with Spain winning on home waters in the second race. The US won the final race of day one. Before the beginning of the second day's racing, the Spanish capsized and caused substantial damage to the F50's wing. Spain was unable to start any of the remaining races, which were won by New Zealand and Australia, with Australia, Great Britain, and the US making the final. Great Britain capsized in the final, allowing Australia to take the win.[36] For the first time of the season, female competitors joined each boat as part of the Female Halfway program.

Round 7: Sydney

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Round 8: San Francisco

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The Australian team won the Grand Final in San Francisco.

Results

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Points were awarded per race for the round leaderboard, with 8 points for the winner, 7 points for second place, 6 points for third, and so on.[37]

Each event hosted multiple races, with the three highest scoring teams after each round facing off to decide the podium order.[i] The winner of that final race won the event, with the final standings of the event leaderboard used to award points for the championship standings, with the winner awarded 10 points, second awarded 9, and so on. The three highest scoring teams at the end of the season competed one-on-one with the winning team awarded the championship.[37]

Pos Team  
BMU
 
TRN
 
PLY
 
AAR
 
STP
 
CDZ
 
SYD
 
SFN
Points
1 2 3 4 5 F 1 2 3 4 5 F 1 2 3 4 5 F 1 2 3 4 5 F 1 2 3 4 5 F 1 2 3 4 5 F 1 2 3 4 5 F 1 2 3 4 5 GF
1   Australia 1 1 1 2 1 2 DNF 6 8 5 2 1 1 7 7 4 1 2 2 5 2 7 1 8 6 6 8 6 2 4 2 4 1 1 3 7 1 4 2 1 2 4 3 2 1 1 65
2   Japan 3 2 5 DNF DNS 2 1 3 3 1 1 5 8 5 1 7 5 3 6 1 1 2 2 2 7 1 7 1 4 2 5 6 3 7 1 DNF 1 1 6 2 1 6 4 2 59 (60)
3   United States 4 6 3 DNF DNS 1 4 1 2 8 3 2 5 1 4 6 3 7 1 3 5 5 5 1 1 7 4 2 3 5 1 3 5 2 6 3 2 3 4 2 5 7 5 5 DNF 3 58
4   Great Britain 7 7 2 1 2 1 6 3 7 6 4 8 7 2 3 1 4 5 1 4 2 3 1 5 8 3 5 1 7 4 2 2 DNF 2 4 DNF WH WH 1 6 4 3 2 50 (54)
5   New Zealand 6 8 8 4 5 3 8 5 1 7 6 6 4 2 8 3 6 2 8 3 4 3 3 2 8 5 6 8 1 6 5 8 5 2 3 3 5 8 1 3 47 (48)
6   Denmark 8 5 7 6 6 7 5 6 4 3 7 2 6 5 3 1 4 7 6 8 6 7 2 5 1 6 3 3 5 7 4 5 4 7 5 4 1 6 7 5 45
7   Spain 5 3 6 3 3 4 2 4 7 5 2 4 4 DSQ 5 5 DNS DNS DNS 3 4 3 4 4 6 2 3 7 1 6 DNS DNS 1 2 3 6 6 3 8 3 2 8 DNF 42 (44)
8   France 2 4 4 5 4 3 5 7 2 8 6 3 3 3 8 2 2 6 7 4 7 6 7 8 5 4 3 8 8 7 7 4 8 6 6 5 7 7 8 7 4 6 39 (40)
Citations:[38][39][40][41][42][43][44][45]
Notes
  • Great Britain was penalised four points in the championship.
  • Spain was penalised two points in the championship.
  • France was penalised one point in the championship.
  • Japan was penalised one point in the championship.
  • New Zealand was penalised one point in the championship.
Key
Colour Result
1 Winner
2 Second place
3 Third place
4–8 Finish
DNF Did not finish
DNS Did not start
DSQ Disqualified
WH Withheld from racing
C Race cancelled

Impact League

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As part of SailGP's sustainability initiatives, the championship introduced a second leaderboard on which teams compete to have the greatest improvement in the sustainability of the sport. Teams are externally audited after each round against 10 criteria, with the top three ranked teams awarded prize money to be donated to the teams' sustainability partners.[46]

Standings

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Pos Team  
BMU
 
TRN
 
PLY
 
AAR
 
STP
 
CDZ
 
SYD
 
SFN
Points
1   New Zealand 89 133 163 165 177 168 172 180 1246
2   Great Britain 54 134 157 176 165 161 166 177 1192
3   Australia 60 118 153 160 164 174 168 164 1161
4   Spain 82 99 144 145 149 156 147 176 1094
5   France 70 101 141 164 150 120 169 166 1081
6   Japan 26 81 152 140 156 169 158 166 1048
7   United States 38 116 143 141 142 133 148 163 1024
8   Denmark 75 119 119 102 125 144 139 145 967
Citation:[47]

Notes

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  1. ^ a b The Bermuda Sail Grand Prix was originally scheduled for 24–25 April, but the first day of racing was moved to 23 April after poor racing winds were forecast on 24 April. The broadcast went ahead on 24 April as planned.[12]
  2. ^ INEOS was the presenting partner of the British SailGP team for the annulled Sydney round, but they did not continue to sponsor the team when the season resumed.
  3. ^ Kirby was the original helmsman of the US team and competed in that role for the opening round in Sydney. He was replaced prior to the new opening round in Bermuda and instead competed as flight controller.[2]
  4. ^ a b Although the first round in Sydney was successfully completed before the delay of the rest of the season, points scored were later removed from the championship.
  5. ^ New York originally appeared on the 2020 schedule and the revised 2021 schedule, but was removed from the 2021–22 schedule.
  6. ^ The Great Britain Sail Grand Prix was originally scheduled to be held in Cowes, Isle of Wight.
  7. ^ The Denmark Sail Grand Prix was originally scheduled to be held in Copenhagen.
  8. ^ New Zealand was removed from the schedule after SailGP were denied permission to enter the country.
  9. ^ Up until the 2020 Sydney Sail Grand Prix, the final race of each round included only the two top-scoring teams.

References

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  1. ^ a b c "SailGP Season 2 rescheduled for 2021". SailGP. May 4, 2020. Archived from the original on May 6, 2020. Retrieved August 20, 2020.
  2. ^ "Jimmy Spithill to join United States SailGP Team". SailGP. December 8, 2020. Archived from the original on January 4, 2021. Retrieved December 9, 2020.
  3. ^ a b Koravos, Jillian (February 16, 2020). "SailGP Season 2 Media Guide". Archived from the original (PDF) on August 20, 2020. Retrieved August 20, 2020.
  4. ^ a b "SailGP announces addition of New Zealand team, led by Olympic and America's Cup champions Peter Burling and Blair Tuke". SailGP. August 7, 2020. Archived from the original on August 20, 2020. Retrieved August 20, 2020.
  5. ^ "New Zealand". SailGP. Archived from the original on April 18, 2021. Retrieved March 1, 2021.
  6. ^ "New crew for New Zealand SailGP Team". Scuttlebutt Sailing News. May 22, 2021. Archived from the original on May 23, 2021. Retrieved May 28, 2021.
  7. ^ "SailGP Season 2 leader shuffles line-up". Scuttlebutt Sailing News. May 19, 2021. Archived from the original on June 7, 2021. Retrieved May 28, 2021.
  8. ^ Thurston, Emma (October 8, 2021). "SailGP: Female athletes to race alongside men for first time in Cadiz, Andalusia". Sky Sports. Archived from the original on October 8, 2021. Retrieved October 9, 2021.
  9. ^ "China out for SailGP 2020". Scuttlebutt Sailing News. December 17, 2019. Archived from the original on January 4, 2020. Retrieved August 20, 2020.
  10. ^ Radnedge, Christian, ed. (December 17, 2019). "Spain sets sights on SailGP after China jumps ship". Reuters. Archived from the original on January 4, 2021. Retrieved January 4, 2021.
  11. ^ "Denmark SailGP Team to join world-class lineup for Season 2". mysailing.com.au. December 11, 2019. Archived from the original on January 4, 2021. Retrieved January 4, 2021.
  12. ^ a b Gladwell, Richard (April 23, 2021). "Burling and Tuke get sailing in Bermuda, but will race a day early". Sail-World.com. Archived from the original on April 23, 2021. Retrieved April 24, 2021.
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  18. ^ Passa, Dennis (June 17, 2021). "SailGP: flying catamarans back on Sydney Harbour in December". AP News. Retrieved June 17, 2021.
  19. ^ a b Woods, Melissa (June 17, 2021). "SailGP series returning to Sydney Harbour". Perth Now. Retrieved June 17, 2021.
  20. ^ a b "New Zealand Government denies MIQ spots for SailGP in Christchurch". NZ Herald. August 16, 2021. Archived from the original on August 16, 2021. Retrieved August 16, 2021.
  21. ^ "Burling and Tuke join SailGP". Scuttlebutt Sailing News. August 6, 2020. Archived from the original on November 25, 2020. Retrieved November 25, 2020.
  22. ^ "Ainslie and team win SailGP Sydney". Scuttlebutt Sailing News. February 29, 2020. Archived from the original on March 1, 2020. Retrieved April 24, 2021.
  23. ^ a b c "SailGP Sydney Results". SailGP. February 29, 2020. Archived from the original on March 18, 2020. Retrieved August 20, 2020.
  24. ^ "SailGP Season 2 is postponed". Scuttlebutt Sailing News. May 4, 2020. Archived from the original on January 20, 2021. Retrieved April 24, 2021.
  25. ^ Wilson, Bernie (April 23, 2021). "Slingsby, Aussies dominate SailGP opener". The West Australian. Archived from the original on June 7, 2021. Retrieved April 24, 2021.
  26. ^ "Britain beats Slingsby's Aussies in SailGP". The West Australian. April 25, 2021. Archived from the original on June 7, 2021. Retrieved April 26, 2021.
  27. ^ Thurston, Emma (April 25, 2021). "Sir Ben Ainslie and Great Britain win first final in Bermuda". Sky Sports. Archived from the original on June 7, 2021. Retrieved April 25, 2021.
  28. ^ "Penalties". sailgp.com. Archived from the original on June 3, 2021. Retrieved June 6, 2021.
  29. ^ a b "Japan crowned Italy Sail Grand Prix Champions". SailGP. Archived from the original on June 7, 2021. Retrieved June 6, 2021.
  30. ^ "SailGP: Nathan Outteridge's Japan victorious in Taranto; Jimmy Spithill's USA crash in final". Sky Sports. Archived from the original on June 7, 2021. Retrieved June 6, 2021.
  31. ^ a b Clarke, John (October 9, 2021). "A Sailing Season Full of Drama". The New York Times. p. A13. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved October 13, 2021.
  32. ^ "Spithill steers US into SailGP lead on Plymouth Sound". AP News. July 17, 2021. Archived from the original on July 17, 2021. Retrieved July 18, 2021.
  33. ^ "Slingsby steers Aussies to SailGP victory". 7NEWS. July 18, 2021. Retrieved July 19, 2021.
  34. ^ "Spithill's US crew wins 2 races, leads SailGP regatta". The Seattle Times. September 11, 2021. Retrieved September 27, 2021.
  35. ^ Darling, Jordan B (September 23, 2021). "U.S. SailGP Team Climbs Leaderboard in Saint Tropez". The Log. Archived from the original on September 24, 2021. Retrieved September 27, 2021.
  36. ^ "Aussies sail to victory after dramatic crashes for British and Spanish boats". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. October 11, 2021. Retrieved October 13, 2021.
  37. ^ a b "SailGP Explained // How Scoring Works". SailGP. Archived from the original on June 3, 2021. Retrieved June 7, 2021.
  38. ^ "Bermuda Sail Grand Prix | Results". SailGP. April 25, 2021. Archived from the original on June 7, 2021. Retrieved April 26, 2021.
  39. ^ "Italy Sail Grand Prix results". SailGP. Archived from the original on June 7, 2021. Retrieved June 7, 2021.
  40. ^ "Great Britain Sail Grand Prix results". SailGP. Retrieved July 19, 2021.
  41. ^ "ROCKWOOL Denmark Sail Grand Prix | Aarhus Rankings, Leaderboards". SailGP. August 21, 2021. Retrieved August 21, 2021.
  42. ^ "France Sail Grand Prix | Saint-Tropez Rankings, Leaderboards". SailGP. September 12, 2021. Retrieved October 9, 2021.
  43. ^ "Spain Sail Grand Prix | Andalucía - Cádiz Rankings, Leaderboards". SailGP. October 10, 2021. Retrieved October 11, 2021.
  44. ^ "Australia Sail Grand Prix | Sydney | Results, Rankings, Leaderboards". SailGP. December 18, 2021. Retrieved December 18, 2021.
  45. ^ "SailGP Results - United States Sail Grand Prix: Sydney Rankings, Leaderboards". SailGP. March 27, 2022. Retrieved March 28, 2022.
  46. ^ "A Race For The Future: SailGP becomes first sport to integrate positive impact into its global league". SailGP. July 14, 2021. Archived from the original on July 14, 2021. Retrieved July 14, 2021.
  47. ^ "SailGP Impact League | Results". SailGP. March 27, 2022. Retrieved March 28, 2022.
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