Kiwi shifts to Swiss SailGP team along with several Alinghi America's Cup crew
by SailGP 19 Oct 2024 09:47 PDT
Stewart Dodson (NZL) is one of several crew joining the Swiss SailGP team - now in private ownership © SailGP
Incoming Switzerland grinder Stewart Dodson has cited the team’s private ownership as ‘key’ to his decision to transfer from Spain.
Dodson was a grinder on board the Spanish team for the entirety of last season, helping the team rise from its last place in Season 3 to winning the overall Season 4 Championship.
The current off-season period has been rife with transfer news as teams prepare their crew line-ups for next season. Switzerland has been no exception, announcing Dodson as part of its 2025 Season team.
Dodson described the decision to move from the Spanish team ‘after such a successful season’ as ‘difficult’, but highlighted the additional ‘security’ of joining a privately owned team.
“With the future of the Spanish team being up in the air a little bit with funding and ownership, it felt more secure to change [to] Switzerland,” he said.
Dodson joins a largely reshuffled Swiss crew line-up, which includes Arnaud Psarofaghis as wing trimmer and Bryan Mettraux as flight controller. Both competed as part of the Swiss America’s Cup Challenger, Alinghi Red Bull Racing, while Psarofaghis has previous SailGP experience - driving for Spain and New Zealand at standalone events.
Looking ahead, Dodson predicted ‘a really bright future’ for the Swiss team, which will look to rebound from its last place finish in Season 4. “There’s been a lot of crew changes happening and I think with the new team we’ve got involved, it’ll be a very exciting season ahead.”
The hope, he added, is that Switzerland is ‘fighting for the podium’ next season. “Obviously it’s going to be a great challenge - there’s a lot of hard work to be done, but I think with the team we’ve got involved, it’s very possible.”
Preparation for the upcoming season is well underway, with plenty of team meetings ‘dividing up responsibilities, preparing playbooks’ and investigating past racing data. “We’re working out how we can hit the ground running as fast as possible in Dubai with limited training time."