SailGP San Tropez: Celebrity supporters for Aussie team, watch video of wing sail collapse

They had a super yacht of Aussie celebrities and A-listers watching on and Tom Slingsby and his crew put on quite a show in a battle with an old and famous SailGP rival in France.

An aerial view of the damaged New Zealand SailGP Team F50 catamaran after racing on Day 1 of the France Sail Grand Prix in Saint-Tropez. Picture: Ricardo Pinto for SailGP.

Tom Slingsby and his Australian crew have ended a cursed run of results in Saint Tropez by racing into the podium at the France Sail Grand Prix.

After an up-and-down weekend of racing - watched by a superyacht with old Sydney to Hobart sailing mates aboard including accountant to the stars Anthony Bell and television personality Larry Emdur - the Australians raced off with a podium for the first time at the tricky Mediterranean venue.

Slingsby has sailed with Bell and entertainment and sporting celebrities including Emdur, Karl Stefanovic, Michael Clarke, Sally Fitzgibbons, Anthony Minichielo, Danny Green and others on the Loyal supermaxi in the famous ocean race to Hobart in the past with some of his old crew mates holidaying in Europe and taking the opportunity to watch him in action racing a super-fast foiling catamaran.

After mixed results on the opening day, Slingsby and the Aussie Roos won the final qualifying race to force their way into the three-boat finale against the Ben Ainslie skippered Great Britain catamaran and the inform Spanish team lead by Diego Botin.

Ainslie won from Slingsby and his team in a fierce tussle.

OMG 😱@SailGPNZL’s wing collapsed following racing today. Luckily all are safe and damage to the boat is currently being assessed. More details to come! pic.twitter.com/loUN9gNzmH

— SailGP (@SailGP) September 9, 2023

“It’s nice to have a better result for us here in Saint Tropez and we can finally say that the curse is over, but of course I am disappointed as I felt we led most of that race and were sailing really well,’’ Slingsby said.

“That team (Great Britain) is so deserving of a win and the fact that they haven’t won an event in two and a half years is unbelievable because they are such a strong team.

“They hung tight and when the opportunity came to take it from us, they took it so hats off to them.”

Emirates Great Britain SailGP Team helmed by Ben Ainslie, Australia SailGP Team helmed by Tom Slingsby and Spain SailGP Team helmed by Diego Botin in San Tropez.

It was Ainslie’s first triumph since the Bermuda Sail Grand Prix Two-and-a-half years ago.

“When I look back at my career and these tight races with Ben Ainslie, I think I’ll look back at today pretty fondly, but I still would have loved to get the upper hand.’’

The next leg of the series is in Taranto, Italy, on September 23 and 24.

Standings after three events: 1. Australia 26 points, 2. Spain 24, 3. Denmark 23, 4. Team GB 19, 5. New Zealand 17, 6. United States 14, 7. France 13, 8. Canada 12, 9. Switzerland 7, 10. Germany 4

DAY OF DRAMA AS SAIL EXPLODES

Shaken sailors were lucky not to have sustained serious injury when their giant sail exploded and collapsed just after they had completed the opening day of the SailGP regatta in San Tropez.

A 29m tall carbon fibre wing sail on a F50 foiling catamaran exploded and collapsed onto the deck and into the water, narrowly missing the New Zealand crew sitting underneath just after racing was completed on Sunday morning.

Incredibly the New Zealand crew, skippered by Olympic champion Peter Burling, avoided injury but were shaken by the shocking incident.

“Everyone’s pretty shaken after what was obviously a very scary incident,” said New Zealand Olympic gold medallist Blair Tuke.

“We’ve had the time to react, ascertain that we’re okay and now as the minutes and hours go on, I think we’re starting to realise both the extent of the damage and how lucky we were.”

Australian skipper Tom Slingsby described the incident as “crazy”.

“We had just crossed the finish line when we heard what had happened and looked over and we couldn’t see a wing,’’ Slingsby said.

“It’s pretty crazy and they are very lucky. We are just glad they are all safe and OK.”

While the New Zealanders were trying to salvage what they could after the incident, Slingsby and his team were debriefing on a day of fluctuating fortunes.

Canada SailGP Team helmed by Phil Robertson lead the SailGP Fleet as they sail past the bell tower and old town of Saint-Tropez. Picture: Ian Walton for SailGP.

In race one they came from dead last to finish fifth, won the second race and then finished second last in the third race of the day.

“It was one of those days for us and had everything out there today, with a first, fifth and an eighth place,’' said the Australian 2012 London Olympic champion from the NSW Central Coast.

“We are flirting with doing well in St Tropez but I don’t feel like the curse is over for us yet. “We have a chance at making the podium and if we male that I will feel like we have finally lifted the curse.”

In the past two events in France the Australian tea, has recorded its worse two performances ever in four seasons of the high octane racing.

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Originally published as SailGP San Tropez: Celebrity supporters for Aussie team, watch video of wing sail collapse