Yachting New Zealand today named the seven young sailors who would represent Emirates Team New Zealand in the Red Bull Youth America’s Cup.
The line up is a who’s who of youth sailing in NZ, but the list of names is absent of one gender. Women.
Why is it that women seem to be left out of this high profile sailing discipline? Surely it can’t be that they are not good enough sailors. And it definitely can’t be because they are not physically fit enough.
Women are trying out for the all girl Volvo Ocean team, so why are they not considered for the Youth America’s Cup or the America’s Cup?
I don’t have the answers, hence the questions! So let’s hear it. Why are women not featured in the AC?
Yachting New Zealand Press Release:
The group of talented young sailors selected to represent New Zealand and have the opportunity to be crowned Youth America’s Cup Champions at the inaugural Red Bull Youth America’s Cup in San Francisco this September has been confirmed.
The support of Emirates Team New Zealand provides this entry to the 2013 Red Bull Youth America’s Cup, submitted by Yachting New Zealand, automatic entry to the September regatta, and the team will be known as the NZL Sailing Team with Emirates Team New Zealand.
Six sailors will race the AC45 during the Red Bull Youth America’s Cup Regatta, but the NZL Sailing Team with Emirates Team New Zealand has named seven sailors including a reserve. The seven sailors are:
Peter Burling – Skipper
Blair Tuke – Tactician
Andy Maloney
Jono Spurdle
Jason Saunders
Guy Endean
Sam Meech
Two-time Olympian and Olympic silver medallist Peter Burling will play a pivotal role heading up the team as Skipper and helm. The 22 year-old kiwi has already had a taste of the action having helmed an AC45 catamaran for Team Korea in San Francisco in September 2012, providing the team a potential edge over other entries.
Skipper, Peter Burling says that all seven sailors are delighted to be selected for the highly coveted positions on the team and ready to embrace the opportunity which is now open to them.
“I’m really confident that we have a great group of guys together,” says Burling.
“We’ve had great input from some of the Emirates Team New Zealand guys including Joey Allen and Glen Ashby which has been awesome. Plus we’ve had the bonus of some training time on an ETNZ AC45 already, which is invaluable.”
Burling’s 2012 Olympic partner, 23 year old Blair Tuke is on the team as tactician. The Olympic silver medallist from Northland was recently crowned 2013 National Champion in the A-Class catamaran and sailed his first Sydney to Hobart Race in December.
Another three sailors are existing members of the NZL Sailing Team, New Zealand’s top tier Olympic campaigners. Laser sailors Andy Maloney (22 years) and Sam Meech (21 years), along with Olympic 470 sailor Jason Saunders (22 years) have all been named on the NZL Sailing Team with Emirates Team New Zealand.
Andy Maloney not only delivered a Laser World Championship podium finish last year with a bronze medal, but additionally he brings multihull experience having raced recent international Extreme 40 events with the Oman Air team.
The youngest sailor named today Sam Meech has risen from gold at the Youth World Championships in 2009 continuing to display remarkable talent with top level results in the hotly competitive open Laser international fleet.
Jason Saunders was one half of the Men’s 470 pair to represent New Zealand at the London 2012 Olympic Games, producing one of the less lauded yet very impressive results of the New Zealand team with a fifth place in the duo’s debut Olympics.
Jono Spurdle (21 years) brings both strength as well as keelboat match racing nous to the team having campaigned with young New Zealand match racing team Full Metal Jacket over recent years.
And Guy Endean (23 years) is another talented keelboat sailor who travelled as shore crew with New Zealand’s Volvo Ocean Race entry CAMPER with Emirates Team New Zealand
The Red Bull Youth America’s Cup is a four day regatta on between 1st – 7th September in San Francisco featuring national teams of six sailors racing in AC45 catamarans, the same boats used for the America’s Cup World Series regattas which have captivated global audiences.
Eligible sailors must hold a national passport and be aged between 19 and 24 years, and those named in the NZL Sailing Team with Emirates Team New Zealand have been chosen after an application and selection process which was a collaborative effort between Yachting New Zealand and Emirates Team New Zealand.
NZL Sailing Team with Emirates Team New Zealand
Sailor Profiles
Peter Burling
DOB: 1/1/1991
Position: Skipper
Yacht Club: Tauranga Yacht & Powerboat Club
Sailing Career Highlights:
- 49er class -Olympic Silver Medal – London 2012 Olympic Games
- Double Silver medallist 49er World Championship (2011 and 2012)
- Youngest sailor at Beijing 2008 Olympics – finished 11th in 470 class (aged 17)
- 420 World Champion 2006 and 2007 aged 15 and 16.
Blair Tuke – Tactician
DOB: 27/7/1989
Position: Tactician
Yacht Club: Kerikeri Cruising Club
Sailing Career Highlights:
- 49er class -Olympic Silver Medal – London 2012 Olympic Games
- Double Silver medallist 49er World Championship (2011 and 2012)
- 29er World Champion 2009 & Splash World Champions 2006
Andy Maloney
DOB: 2/6/1990
Yacht Club: Murrays Bay Sailing Club
Sailing Career Highlights:
- Bronze Medal 2012 Laser World Championship
- Silver Medal 2012 ISAF Sailing World Cup – Hyeres
- Winner 2007 Laser Radial Men’s Youth World Championship
Jono Spurdle
DOB: 13/3/1991
Yacht Club: Wakatere Boating Club/RNZYS
Sailing Career Highlights:
- 2nd Match Race France, Marseille, 2012
- 1st Asian Match Racing Championships, 2011
- 1st Knickerbocker Cup, New York, 2012
- Sir Peter Blake Leadership Award in 2010
Jason Saunders
DOB: 22/11/1990
Yacht Club: Tauranga Yacht & Powerboat Club
Sailing Career Highlights:
- 5th place London 2012 Olympic Games – Men’s 470 class
- Bronze Medal 2012 Sail for Gold Regatta
- Winner 2012 French Spring Cup Regatta
Guy Endean
DOB: 31/3/1989
Yacht Club: RNZYS
Sailing Career Highlights:
- Line Honours Winner 2009 Rolex Fastnet Race
- Line and Handicap Winner 2010 RORC Caribbean 600 Race
- Line and Handicap Winner 2009 Transatlantic Maxi Yacht Cup
Sam Meech
DOB: 4/4/1991
Yacht Club: Tauranga Yacht & Powerboat Club
Sailing Career Highlights:
- Winner 2009 ISAF Youth World Championship – Laser class
- 4th place 2011 ISAF Sailing World Cup, Palma
- Winner Under 21 2011 Laser World Championship
Links:
About the Red Bull Youth America’s Cup
Red Bull Youth America’s Cup Requirements and Event Notice
Images:
Banner image © Chris Cameron/ETNZ
Team shot and headshots available on request, by reply to this email.
For more information contact:
Jodie Bakewell-White, Communications Manager, Yachting New Zealand
Email Jodie
Mobile 021 709 065
Shameless plug… Join our forum and get the conversations about stuff like this on there!
http://forum.livesaildie.com
How is that calculated? Being a female i myself have been told the same my whole life not heavy and strong enough. right… To know this would imply that females are given a chance to begin with. Its an amazing opportunity and will be great for the sport and the women’s volvo team and will attract a whole new audience. I cant wait to watch the start with so many magnificent sailings both male and female a like.
Manuela a fair few females signed up for the youth americas cup.
Best of luck to the nzl boys and full metal Jacket racing
The AC45 will be faster if the crew have high strength as well as fitness, except for the helm.
Women can be fit enough but lack strength.
The only solutions are to have separate womens and men’s events, or a quota.
The Volvo race is different because there are many hours of endurance activity so women can be competitive.
The Olympic cat will probably tend to have women helms for the same reason – males will have an advantage in trimming the highly loaded mainsail and gennaker.
I like what someone said of the Opua Cruising Club FB page
“girls would be a distraction”
Hahaha, yep, sailing girls are awesome :-)
Yes… Aren’t we just :-)
It may be a farce to some Hells Bells, but it is a farce that attracts a huge international audience and whether you are for it or against it, everyone has an opinion and a solution! (This is a good thing for our sport…) I personally think in this situation, its a physical thing re women in the cup. Never before has cup racing been this fast paced and intense. I would love to be proved wrong though!
Understand it’s physical, but if women can do the Volvo then why not this?
Don’t even get me started on the VOR… who have obviously got their heads together and calculated girls to be 20% weaker than boys, as they’ve allowed girls to have teams of 10 where the boys have teams of 8. Erm, thanks (but no thanks) VOR, for putting a precise figure on our universally acknowledged weakness.
AC has always been a “boys’ club”, and it seems to be more about posturing and posing and comparing genitals than it is about sailing. Let them have it, I say. It’s a farce anyway. :-p
ha ha ha… well yes… this is another way to look at this… well put Hells Bells ;-)
The photo of the team portrays tough young men. But there are also tough young women with equal, or if not, and dare I say it, even better sailing skills? It would be great to get a definite answer…. ANYONE???
funny that.. not really! I’ve been asking this question on a club level for a while now. Our local club (Opua Cruising Club) has a very highly contested and all year round “Ladies” racing series. And most boats have young girls on board as crew. But we never seem to attract many girls to the Youth Sailing Programme. I’ve also written to the Kerikeri High School Sailing Team and asked why we don’t see more girls (or any girls) emerging from their programme. Is it because teenage girls aren’t interested? Or does the the school/sailing team not push girls to succeed in yacht racing? Guess what? I’ve never received an answer… and I have to mention that we have a 13 year old daughter who is super keen on yachting and we were contemplating to send her to Kerikeri High, but with no reply (from more than one email) we decided it is a waste of time.
Another question is, how many females applied for the Amercia’s Cup team? Can anyone shed some light on this?