‘Oh my lord’: Crew sent tumbling as USA boat capsizes in scary SailGP moment

There were scary scenes at SailGP Bermuda when the American team’s crew were sent tumbling in a horror moment when their boat capsized.

There were dramatic scenes during the practice race day in Bermuda when the USA SailGP Team capsized mid race, causing some of the athletes to be flung from their positions onboard.

The USA team capsized during the third practice race en route to the first rounding mark.

Footage shows the F50 boat slowly tilting over before ending up completely on its side in the water, with the American crew tumbling downwards. One sailor fell and ripped a hole through the wing on their way into the water.

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They were all attached to ropes per SailGP protocols and thankfully escaped significant injury despite the scary bungee jumping-esque fall.

The boat has been recovered and damage to the wing is currently being assessed to determine if the team can race this weekend.

The commentators audibly gasped as the USA’s boat tipped into the water.

Stevie Morrison exclaimed: “They flipped, oh my lord! Oh I hope no one’s hurt in that. That was a disaster. They flipped the wing the wrong way.”

Watch Team USA’s capsize at SailGP Bermuda in the video above

Ah, that’s not supposed to happen. Photo: Instagram@SailGP.

USA CEO Mike Buckley said it was an “unfortunate incident” and later announced the team would not be able to race in Bermuda dude to damage to the wing.

“Unfortunately our race weekend is now over after yesterday’s high-speed crash during practice racing, and while thankfully our athletes are all ok, there was significant damage to the F50,” he said.

“Unfortunately it is not repairable in time for us to get back on the water for racing here in Bermuda.

“We are extremely disappointed.We will learn from this and are looking forward to being back on the water in Halifax.”

It’s not the first scary crash in SailGP has witnessed. A member of Great Britain’s crew went overboard in scary scenes at last year’s Sydney event when he slipped through the trampoline netting, known as fairing.

British grinder Matt Grotrel was battered and bruised but thankfully he didn’t come into contact with the F50’s sharp foils.

The Australians also were able to test the Flying Roo during the practice to confirm it was race ready, following the completion of urgent major repairs after the Aussies disastrous crash in Christchurch.

The incident, which caused serious damage in particular to the beam on Australia’s F50, resulted in the most severe penalty in SailGP history — the loss of 12 event points and 8 season points.

This meant Australia dropped from the top spot of the season four leaderboard to second overall, nine points behind new leaders New Zealand.

USA SailGP Team helmed by Taylor Canfield capsize in Bermuda. Photo: Handout image supplied by SailGP.

Aussie team driver Tom Slingsby said the team was “fired up and ready for redemption in Bermuda” as they aim to recover season points and attempt to close the point gap between New Zealand.

The leaderboard shake up now has six teams in close contention to make the Grand Final, so Bermuda, the 10th stop of the Season 4 Calendar, will prove to be a critical turning point with just two events remaining before the Grand Final in San Francisco.

After Bermuda there are three more events in Halifax, New York and San Francisco before the top three teams race for glory next to the Golden Gate Bridge.

Support boats surround the capsized SailGP F50 catamaran of USA SailGP Team. Photo: Bob Martin for SailGP.

New Zealand skipper Peter Burling hit back at suggestions the Kiwis were gifted their healthy buffer in the overall standings thanks to Australia’s penalty.

“We have earned our right to be here,” said Burling.

“The penalty points are ridiculously harsh for crashing but the policy is pretty set.

“We’ve been hit by it ourselves in past seasons. It’s very harsh but very clear in terms of what the penalties are when you have these incidents. Everyone is trying their utmost to keep these boats apart.”

Watch the latest episode of Racing On The Edge and all the action from SailGP Bermuda on Kayo Sports. Coverage begins at 3am AEST on Sunday and Monday morning AEST or watch the replays later in the morning.

SailGP season four leaderboard

New Zealand — 68 points

Australia — 59 points

Spain — 55 points

France — 54 points

Denmark — 50

United States — 48

Canada — 46

Great Britain — 45

Germany — 27

Switzerland — 22

Originally published as ‘Oh my lord’: Crew sent tumbling as USA boat capsizes in scary SailGP moment