Athena Pathway announces crew for Louis Vuitton 38th America's Cup Preliminary Regatta Sardinia
by Athena Pathway 12 May 09:51 PDT
21-24 May 2026
The Athena Pathway race crew for the Louis Vuitton 38th America's Cup Sardinia (l-r) Hannah Mills OBE and Ellie Aldridge MBE, Matt Beck, Sam Webb © Cameron Gregory
Athena Pathway, the team representing Great Britain in the Women's and Youth America's Cup events, is proud to announce its race crew for the Louis Vuitton 38th America's Cup Preliminary Regatta Sardinia, set to take place in Cagliari, Italy, from 21-24 May 2026.
Racing in Cagliari will mark the first time the Athena Pathway team has competed since finishing runners-up in the inaugural Women's America's Cup and securing third place in the Youth America's Cup at the 37th America's Cup in Barcelona in 2024. The Preliminary Regatta Sardinia will also be the first time in official America's Cup racing where Women & Youth teams will compete on an equal footing against the senior squad sailors.
The Athena Pathway skipper and helm position will once again be filled by Team Principal and double Olympic gold medallist Hannah Mills OBE, who will be joined on the opposite helm by Ellie Aldridge MBE, Paris 2024 Formula Kite Olympic gold medallist.
Athena Pathway Team Principal Hannah Mills OBE said: "We are absolutely buzzing to get out there racing again. This will be a big step up, competing against the seasoned America's Cup teams, but we are up for the challenge and have been training hard against GB1 in the lead-up, so there will be no holding back on the start line."
The two trimmers will come from the Athena Pathway Youth Programme. Matt Beck rejoins the team after competing in the previous Youth America's Cup campaign, while newcomer Sam Webb completes the line-up, having progressed through an intense and competitive trialist selection process featuring many of the UK's leading youth sailing talents.
The Athena Pathway Trialist Programme was launched through an open application process, which attracted 158 applicants. From those, 21 sailors were selected to attend simulator trials at the former Olympic venue in Portland, Weymouth. Following the simulator trials, a core squad of 13 sailors was selected to continue developing towards the Youth America's Cup in 2027 and beyond.
Four members of the squad joined three collaborative training camps alongside GB1 and Athena Pathway in Cagliari. Following those camps, 20-year-old Sam Webb from Lymington, Hampshire, was selected to join the Athena Pathway race crew for the Preliminary Regatta.
Athena Pathway trimmer Sam Webb outlined his excitement ahead of the racing: "To be selected for this event is an incredible opportunity and something I'm hugely proud of. Training alongside athletes and sailors of this calibre has already taught me so much, and I'm excited to continue learning and pushing myself in such a high-performance environment.
"Racing against established America's Cup teams in Cagliari will be a massive experience for me, and I'm looking forward to getting out there."
Mills added: "The Trialist Programme has been a brilliant process in helping our wider squad develop, and we now have 13 brilliant young sailors who are all gaining high-performance experience. Sam excelled both in the simulator and during race practice with GB1 throughout our recent camp. He is also a great character to have around the team."
Founded by Hannah Mills OBE and Sir Ben Ainslie in 2022 to fast-track the progression of British youth and female athletes in high-performance sailing, Athena Pathway is built on a mission to create a more equitable and inclusive future within the sport and the wider marine industry.
Athena Pathway Founder Sir Ben Ainslie said:
"It has been great to see Athena Pathway grow over the last four years, with more than 100 young sailors apply to take part in our trials. Programmes like this are exactly what the America's Cup needs to help grow the sport and engage a younger and more diverse audience with this great event.
"It's certainly a new experience to have two British teams competing in a regatta, and I've seen from our AC40 training camps that there's been some incredibly close racing between GB1 and Athena Pathway already, so it's set to be an incredible spectacle to see Women's and Youth teams and Senior America's Cup squads going head-to-head."
Athena Pathway Race Crew
- Hannah Mills, 38, from Cardiff, Wales - Starboard Helm
- Ellie Aldridge, 29, from Poole, Dorset - Port Helm
- Sam Webb, 20, from Lymington, Hampshire - Starboard Trimmer
- Matt Beck, 24, from Ledbury, Herefordshire - Port Trimmer
All the action can be followed live in the UK on YouTube and on the America's Cup Official Website. Check out the team's social channels for the latest news and updates ahead of and throughout the racing, including breaking news, behind-the-scenes features, videos, photos and more.