Planet Sail: SailGP Sydney Showdown
by Matt Sheahan 22 Dec 2021 22:58 PST
17-18 December 2021
SailGP Sydney Showdown © PlanetSail
It's understandable that with the end of the SailGP 2021-22 season in sight and a one-million dollar race just a few months away at the San Francisco finale, that the action should ramp up with the Australia SailGP event in Sydney. There was also no doubting that the pressure was on.
Local hero Tom Slingsby needed to prove that he wasn't going to suffer the humiliating defeat that Ainslie had inflicted last time that the British were here. Fellow Australian Nathan Outteridge was out to prove that he wasn't just a light wind whisperer. Phil Robertson needed to demonstrate that he could deliver more than headlines for controversial behaviour and prove that he was worthy of a seat for next season. With Olympic medals and 'that Cup' win the Kiwis had to demonstrate that they could run with the big dogs, while the French had to prove that the changes the team had made would get them off the bottom rung of the ladder. And so the list went on.
Yet, even with all this season intel and the pressures that lay behind the scenes, nobody predicted the way that this regatta played out. We take a look at what was happening both on and off the water in an event that few will forget in a hurry... especially the sailors.
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