Switzerland SailGP Team set for first-ever ROCKWOOL Canada Sail Grand Prix this weekend
by Switzerland SailGP Team 1 Jun 2024 16:04 AEST
1-2 June 2024
Switzerland SailGP Team for the ROCKWOOL Canada Sail Grand Prix © SUI SailGP Team
Switzerland SailGP Team races in Halifax this weekend, at the first ever ROCKWOOL Canada Sail Grand Prix, 1-2 June. Racing takes place 9pm CEST / 4 p.m. ADT and fans in SUI can watch all the action live on Blue Sport or SailGP's YouTube channel.
Spectators here in the city will enjoy front row viewing action, as the 10 F50s race in a tight, compact course close to the harbour front.
The Canadian SailGP marks the 11th event of Season 4's 13-event calendar but only the third event with two-time Olympic medallist, Nathan Outteridge, behind the wheel of the Swiss F50. Earlier this month, the team was racing in Bermuda, continuing to build the crew's foundations, and maximising time together on the water.
Outteridge said: "Things take time. The teams racing at the front, they have the most experience, not just the drivers but everyone on the boat. It's only the second season for the Swiss team and we are still in a learning phase. We poke our head at the front of the fleet at times and we had a great race win in Bermuda but it's not easy, for sure it is difficult to compete at the front. It takes consistency. Training days and time together is gold.
"Halifax this weekend will our third event [together] and we are looking to continue building the momentum from Bermuda. It will be a pretty epic racing; a tight, shifty racecourse with plenty of action and it's going to get small pretty quickly out there. We had a taste of this during practice racing today! We are racing close to shore, so it's going to be exciting for the thousands of spectators too."
Outteridge races onboard alongside Will Ryan (wing trimmer), Nicolas Rolaz (flight controller), Laurane Mettraux (strategist) and grinders, Julien Rolaz, Eliot Merceron and Jérémy Bachelin.
It's down to the business end of SailGP Season 4. After Halifax, the teams race in the iconic city of New York, (22-23 June) before the Season's Grand Final in San Francisco (13-14 July). New Zealand's Black Foils currently sit top of the leader board on 77pts with Australia SailGP Team 10 points behind (67pts). Spanish SailGP Team, who won the last event in Bermuda, are close behind the Aussies, on 65pts.
Switzerland SailGP Team crew line up:
Nathan Outteridge - Driver
Will Ryan - Wing trimmer
Nicolas Rolaz - Flight controller
Laurane Mettraux - Strategist
Julien Rolaz - Grinder (G1)
Eliot Merceron - Grinder (G1)
Jérémy Bachelin - Grinder (G2)
SAILGP SEASON 4 CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS (after ten events) //
1 // New Zealand 77 points
2 // Australia 67 points
3 // Spain 65 points
4 // ROCKWOOL Denmark 56 points
5 // France 56 points
6 // Canada 53 points
7 // United States 49 points
8 // Emirates GBR 848 points
9 // Germany 32 points
10 // Switzerland 26 points
SailGP Season 4 Schedule //
2023
June 16-17 // Rolex United States Sail Grand Prix | Chicago at Navy Pier
July 22-23 // United States Sail Grand Prix | Los Angeles
September 9-10 // France Sail Grand Prix | Saint-Tropez
September 23-24 // Rockwool Italy Sail Grand Prix | Taranto
October 14-15 // Spain Sail Grand Prix | Andalucía-Cádiz
December 9-10 // Emirates Dubai Sail Grand Prix | Presented by P&O Marinas
2024
January 13-14 // Mubadala Abu Dhabi Sail Grand Prix Presented by Abu Dhabi Sports Council
February 24-25 // KPMG Australia Sail Grand Prix | Sydney
March 23-24 // ITM New Zealand Sail Grand Prix | Christchurch
May 4-5 // Apex Bermuda Sail Grand Prix
June 1-2 // ROCKWOOL Canada Sail Grand Prix | Halifax
June 22-23 // United States Sail Grand Prix | New York
July 13-14 // SailGP Season 4 Grand Final | San Francisco