Red Bull Foiling Generation - The racing begins - Day 1

by Justene Taua on 4 Mar 2016 Red Bull Foiling Generation made its official race debut Friday on Auckland’s harbour, 32 of New Zealand’s best young sailing talents aged between 16 to 20 years old are battling it out against each other in identical Flying Phantom foils, in a knock-out tournament leading to the deciding final on Sunday.


Foiling Generation is a 15 stop world sailing competition that culminates with the 15 team winners from each location competing at Newport, Rhode Island, USA in October 2016 in the World Final in October this year.

The foiling Phantoms aren't just regular boats – they are super-lightweight, finely-tuned, ultra speed racing machines. 'You need a lot less energy to speed up and a lot less horsepower to get out of the water,' says Sport Director Hans-Peter Steinacher. “I’m impressed with the New Zealand teams. The top 10 teams here are showing that they have a real chance against the rest of the world. They’ve been working really hard.'

With a slow start to day one of the heats, due to the wind being less than 10 knots, the day picked up after lunch with the two winners from each heat now heading to the quarter finals tomorrow. “New Zealand is a fantastic place to sail. It has a nice mix of flat water, with nice wide open spaces, making it overall a good sailing environment,” continues Steinacher.

“The conditions today were really patchy.” Says competitor Harry Hassett. “When we came around the first mark, the boys behind us jibed away in a nice gust, and went straight to first place. We got left behind. And then the second mark we sailed straight into another patch. It just shows that you have to keep your head out of the boat and look for those patches, because that’s the difference between going from zero to hero, or hero to zero.”

The event includes a novel new format, with four boats in distinct colours competing in knockout races for a place in the next round. The top two progress automatically, while the other two boats enter a lucky loser round.

“The spectators in this event adds a nice, new element to the race.” Continues Hassett. “The racing we’re used to is longer in both time and distance, but it means that there aren’t any spectators because you’re so far away from the shore. Red Bull Foiling Generation is the future of sailing. It’s going to be exciting to see how far this event goes with these foiling cats; they’re fun, its spectator oriented because the racing is closer to the shore, so trickier race courses than a nice gentle breeze in the middle of the ocean.”

The winner of the New Zealand final will be invited to compete in the inaugural World Final of the Red Bull Foiling Generation at Newport, Rhode Island, USA in October 2016. Hailed as the future of sailing, this novel event concept is the only race of its kind.

Results Day 1:

Heat 1
1. Trent Rippley and Issac McHardie
2. Matthew Kempkers and Tim Adair
3. George Anyon and Logan Anderson
4. Celia Willson and Charlotte Porter

Heat 2
1. Nick Egnot-Johnson and Jack Rogers
2. Chelsea Rees and Taylor Balogh
3. Oscar Gunn and George Gautrey
4. James Wilson and Henry Hassett

Heat 3
1. William McKenzie and Tamrin Lindsay
2. Jackson Keon and Tom Fyfe
3. Sean Patterson and Jordon Stevenson
4. Hamish McGill and Peron Pearse

Heat 4
1. Micah Wilkinson and Olivia Mackay
2. Patrick Haybittle and Stephanie Kirkman
3. Josh Armit and Joshua Jun Handa
4. Josh Wijohn and Matthew Hughes

Heat 5
1. Trent Rippley and Issac McHardie
2. Matthew Kempkers and Tim Adair
3. Nick Egnot-Johnson and Jack Rogers
4. Chelsea Rees and Taylor Bologh

Heat 6
1. Micah Wilkinson and Olivia Mackay
2. William McKenzie and Tamrin Lindsay
3. Patrick Haybittle and Stephanie Kirkman
4. Jackson Keon and Tom Fyfe

Heat 7
1. George Anyon and Logan Anderson
2. Oscar Gunn and George Gautrey
3. James Wilson and Henry Hassett
4. Celia Willson and Charlotte Porter

Heat 8
1. Josh Armit and Joshua Jun Handa
2. Josh Wijohn and Matthew Hughes
3. Sean Patterson and Jordon Stevenson
4. Hamish McGill and Peron Pearse