Women’s America’s Cup: Australian quartet miss semis, latest race updates, news, results

The women’s America’s Cup dream of an Australian crew is over after just two days of racing, a disastrous touchdown, a broken start penalty and erratic conditions. How it played out.

Australia is chasing a spot in the semi-finals of the Women's America's Cup. Picture: Supplied/America’s Cup media

The women’s America’s Cup dream of an Australian crew is over after just two days of racing, a disastrous touchdown, a broken start penalty and erratic conditions in Barcelona.

With the Canadian boat damaged and the Germans disqualified, only four of the original six boats in Pool B were able to race the full schedule late Tuesday night Australian time.

Australia only needed to finish third overall in the reduced fleet to make the semis.

But it was a result they were unable to attain with their time in the America’s Cup women’s regatta over after eight races and two days of sailing.

It was a devastating result for skipper Olivia Price, fellow helm Laura Harding and trimmers Annie Wilmot and Lisa Darmanin who had high hopes of making a splash in the semi-finals which will be contested by the top three from Pool A and Pool B.

Instead they will be watching from the shore as their rivals fight it out in the semis then in a two-boat finale for the honour of holding the first America’s Cup women’s trophy aloft from the shore.

Australia’s campaign ended after a series of errors and mishaps on the final day. including falling off their foils in a light spot and then breaking the start of the seventh race and copping a penalty for the infraction.

The crew will still go down in history as the first Australian women to race in an America’s Cup regatta.

Annie Wilmot, Olivia Price, Lisa Darmanin and Laura Harding. Picture: Nic Douglass @sailorgirlhq

POOL B AMERICA’S CUP WOMEN’S RACING BLOW BY BLOW DAY 2

Race 5: On D-Day for the Australians, the team came out hot for a second place behind Sweden in the fifth race of the qualifying series.

Netherlands finished third, Spain fourth and Germany fifth with Canada a DNF.

These results saw The Netherlands retain their overall lead with Sweden second and Australian in third overall.

Race 6: Australia came off the start line in second, trailed host nation Spain before hitting a light spot, touching down and falling back to fourth place.

It was a disaster for the Australian who desperately needed a good finish to move into the semi-final safety zone.

Sweden won their third race of the regatta from Spain and The Netherlands with the Australians fourth despite finishing outside the time limit.

The result saw Sweden take the overall lead with Australia falling to fourth place, a spot off a semis spot.

Race 7: When they needed a good start desperately, the Australians instead were over and coped a penalty for the error. They eventually finished last in the race and with a fight on their hands to make the cut.

Race 8: It was a fight for survival but it was too late for Australia.

As Sweden won again, the Australians finished fourth to end their time at the regatta.

With two boats unable to sail, Australia finished fourth again to miss out on a semi-final spot.

Sweden again claimed the race victory from The Netherlands and Spain.

Group A qualifying racing continues later this week.

EARLIER: The Australian crew lead by skipper Olivia Price is hoping a day’s wind delay will play in their favour as they prepare to do battle for a spot in the semi-finals of the women’s America’s Cup in Barcelona.

The Australians and their Pool B combats were supposed to have raced back-to-back days in the qualifying series but light, marginal winds put paid to this.

Instead the Australian team has had a chance to regroup, study their racing and come up with a new game plan after finishing the first day of racing on Sunday in third place will their results including a morale-boosting win but also a last place.

“We’re kind of excited to get our there,’’ said trimmer Lisa Darmanin.

“It’s going to be windy and a little difficult but I think that's a good thing for us.

“As Aussies we love the breeze so we are happy about being able to rip around today.

“I’m confident our team has what it takes do get the job done.’’

Australia’s youth crew made the semi-finals but then failed to advance into the finale.

Only the top three boats from each pool in the women’s racing will advance into the semi-finals.

The event is being raced in identical AC40s.

SATURDAY/SUNDAY: It’s taken 174 years but Australian women are finally sailing in the America's Cup.

The Australian quartet of skipper Olivia Price, fellow helm Laura Harding and trimmers Annie Wilmot and Lisa Darmanin kicked off their campaign in the inaugural Women’s America’s Cup alongside five rival teams in Pool B.

A day earlier six crews associated with the Challenger and Defender syndicates raced their first four races in a historic moment for women.

The moment was not lost on the Australian women with Price claiming just the thought of competing in the famous regatta was “spine tingling’’.

Price is a 2012 Olympic match-racing silver medallist who finished ninth at the recent Paris Olympics in the foiling 49erFX class.

Harding and Wilmot were campaigning against Price in the same boat for the Olympics with Darmanin, a former Olympic silver medallist in the Nacra 17 class.

Racing on the opening day of the Women's America's Cup. Picture: Supplied/America’s Cup.

POOL B AMERICA’S CUP WOMEN’S RACING BLOW BY BLOW DAY 1

Barcelona turned on the sun for the Australia’s first day of racing – just not a lot of wind.

RACE 1; The Australian crew diced for the lead in the first race in an encouraging early sign for their bid to make the semi-finals later this week.

Price and her crew led at the first mark and were just pipped for second place by the local Spanish team at the second and third roundings when disaster struck.

The Australians fell off their foils, losing speed and dropping back to fourth place on the final leg of the opening race.

Then the Spanish also touched down to allow Sweden to take the race win.

The rest of the fleet were unable to finish which resulted in a time out.

This meant results were based on placings in the previous leg where Australia were third.

RACE 2: Australia were penalised for being over at the start but recovered to take the lead early in the second race where just five boats raced after Sweden had a technical issue which stopped them from competing.

They were then never headed to claim their first win at the regatta

“Nice one ladies,” said Price to her crew after the emphatic win.

Spain finished second with The Netherlands third and Canada fourth with Germany disqualified for being out of bounds.
The win saw the Australians secure top spot in the pool.

RACE 3: In a major change of fortune, Australia were vying for a top three placing in the third race when they fell off their foils and then to the back of the fleet.

It took the Aussies significant time to recover as the breeze built and the leaders stretched the gap.

The Netherlands won from the consistent Spanish, Canada, Germany, Sweden with Australia last, 1m:33 behind.

RACE 4: Australia used the last place to fire themselves up for the final race of the day to finish in second place behind the Netherlands, just six seconds off the win.

Sweden, Spain, Germany and Canada followed.

This result put the Australians in third place overall behind the Netherlands and Spain going into the second day of racing.

TEAMS COMPETING THE WOMEN’S AMERICA’S CUP

Group B: Invited Teams

Spain (Royal Barcelona Yacht Club), The Netherlands (Royal Netherlands Yacht Club & Royal Maas Yacht Club). Canada (Royal Vancouver Yacht Club). Germany (Kieler Yacht Club, Norddeutscher Regatta Verein, Bayrischer Yacht Club & Verein Seglerhaus am Wannsee), Sweden (Royal Swedish Yacht Club, Royal Gothenburg Yacht Club), Australia (Cruising Yacht Club of Australia).

Group A: America’s Cup Teams

New Zealand (Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron), Great Britain (Royal Yacht Squadron Ltd), Switzerland (Société Nautique de Genève), USA (New York Yacht Club), Italy (Circolo della Vela Sicilia), France (Société Nautique de Saint-Tropez).

EARLIER: On day one of the regatta the teams associated with the America’s Cup challengers and defender New Zealand took to the waters off Barcelona in a big breeze and rough seas.

The Italian Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli was the standout performer and lead Pool A after four races and plenty of high-seed sailing and multiple touchdowns.

The Italians lead overall going into their second day of racing late Tuesday night form the Great Britain team, Athena Pathway, with Emirates Team New Zealand in third.

Only he top three teams from each pool will advance into the semis.

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Originally published as Women’s America’s Cup: Australian quartet miss semis, latest race updates, news, results