Please select your home edition
Edition
J Composites J/99

PlanetSail's Matt Sheahan questions Ben Ainslie on his decision to step down from SailGP sailing

by PlanetSail 10 Jan 2024 12:13 PST
Ben Ainslie racing for Emirates GBR in Dubai © Emirates Great Britain SailGP Team

Sir Ben Ainslie explains why he has stepped down from driving his team's SailGP F50 foiling cat.

Despite a couple of wins last year in SailGP Season 4, Emirates Great Britain has not managed to continue this momentum. Meanwhile, in Ainslie's America's Cup campaign the team has delivered some poor performances in the two America's Cup preliminary events. So, what has driven Ainslie to step down?

Is it time to re-focus? PlanetSail's Matt Sheahan finds out the answers to these questions and several others, including the role of sailing superstar Hannah Mills, as Ainslie explains the thinking behind this move along with the strategy of the team going forward.

Related Articles

SailGP: Brits on top after Auckland
Highlights, driver reactions and SailGP's full race report: Recapping all the best bits from NZ Dylan Fletcher's Emirates GBR that has been propelled to the top of the 2025 Season leaderboard thanks to consecutive podium performances in Dubai and Auckland. Posted on 21 Jan
Tom Slingby's Flying Roo has sailed to victory
Aussie SailGP team claim the win after a dominant weekend in Auckland The ITM New Zealand Sail Grand Prix came to a dramatic close with an Australian win on rival waters. After delivering a racing master class across the weekend, the Flying Roo claimed a well-deserved victory. Posted on 19 Jan
SailGP Diary: Race Day 2 - Slingsby wins Auckland
Winds at the top end of the racing range tested crews on the second day of SailGP Auckland. A fresh breeze and awkward seastate tested crews on the second day of SailGP Auckland. The crack Australian crew skippered by Tom Slingsby made it look easy - despite a perceived breakdown. Posted on 19 Jan
SailGP Diary: Race Day 1 - Racing spectacular
A High that won't go away provided a day beyond words for the first race day of SailGP in Auckland A High that won't go away provided a day beyond words for the first race day of SailGP in Auckland, and the 11 teams responded magnificently providing an unforgettable day's racing. Posted on 18 Jan
SailGP Diary: Practice Day - Auckland - January 17
Day 5 of SailGP has finished with two fleets sailing practice sessions for three hours. Today was the first racing with T-Foils and several new crew combinations including the just announced American Magic skipper, Paul Goodison moving up from a coaching role to onboard strategist. Posted on 17 Jan
Rolex SailGP Championship will debut this weekend
Eleven teams will get to grips with the newest technology, titanium T-Foils The Rolex SailGP Championship will debut in front of its largest ticketed crowd this weekend, as the ITM New Zealand Sail Grand Prix touches down in Auckland. Posted on 17 Jan
SailGP: New T-Foils are not all about speed
Live testing of the T-Foils is underway, Martine Grael, Peter Burling and Blair Tuke's impressions It is perhaps ironic that the test sailing of the new T-Foils to be used in the rest of SailGP Season 5 is taking place in the same location, on Auckland's Hauraki Gulf, where an AC72 first foiled in September 2012. Posted on 15 Jan
SailGP: 'A baptism by fire'
SailGP introduces high-speed titanium ‘T-Foils' fleetwide in Auckland in top-end breeze Monday's session marked the first time multiple teams have practiced alongside one another using the new technology. T-Foils will be rolled out for the first time in racing this weekend in Auckland. Posted on 13 Jan
SailGP introduces titanium 'T-Foils' fleetwide
The first time multiple teams have practiced using the new technology After nearly two years of rigorous testing, SailGP has rolled out its new high-speed titanium 'T-foils,' across the league's international F50 fleet. Posted on 13 Jan
SailGP: Kiwis hit 52.5kts
Six of the 12 SailGP teams trained in Auckland today in fresh sou'westerly (offshore) winds Six of the 12 SailGP teams trained in Auckland today in fresh sou'westerly (offshore) winds that asked plenty of questions of the crews. Posted on 13 Jan
Lloyd Stevenson - Catalyst GT 1456x180px BOTTOMPredictWind - GPS 728x90 BOTTOMRS Sailing 2021 - FOOTER