A new feature of next year’s America’s Cup calendar is the Red Bull Youth America’s Cup, scheduled for September 1-4, 2013 and created to give youth sailors ages 19-24 an opportunity to compete in America’s Cup-style racing and to identify the next stars of the sport.
BC Staff Report
Published: December, 2012
A new feature of next year’s America’s Cup calendar is the Red Bull Youth America’s Cup, scheduled for September 1-4, 2013 and created to give youth sailors ages 19-24 an opportunity to compete in America’s Cup-style racing and to identify the next stars of the sport.
With the goal of ensuring that the best of the best are on the starting line of the main event, the Selection Series Trials will narrow the field through a rigorous training workshop and regatta to occur in San Francisco February 9-24.
"Prospective teams can enter the Red Bull Youth America’s Cup in three ways," explained Iain Murray, the Regatta Director for the 34th America’s Cup. "First, they can enter through an affiliation with a current AC World Series team. Second, they can purchase an AC45 and register a team. Or finally, they can apply and qualify through the Selection Series."
Currently there are over 20 teams from 17 nations who have applied in the third category and are eligible for the Selection Series. But before they even get to the Selection Series Trials, these teams will need to convince the race committee they have the talent and wherewithal to succeed.
"We want to ensure we have the most talented lineup possible," Murray said. "So we’ve enlisted Roman Hagara and Hans-Peter Steinacher, double Olympic gold medalists in the Tornado catamaran, to manage the selection process as sport directors for the event. They’ll be visiting the prospective teams between now and February to assess their capabilities and guide their training programs."
"We need to be sure only the best of the best are coming to San Francisco in February to compete for the coveted spots that will be available for the Red Bull Youth America’s Cup in September 2013," Hagara said. "These teams need to prove to us they have the talent, the commitment and the drive to potentially win the Red Bull Youth America’s Cup next year," added Steinacher.
The Selection Series will be held in San Francisco on the same AC45 wingsail catamarans the teams will race in September. These are also the same boats the America’s Cup crews are racing in the AC World Series. For the youth teams who come to San Francisco in February, the Selection Series is the first step on the pathway to competing for one of the most prestigious trophies in all of sport—the America’s Cup.
"Breaking into the Cup is hard," ORACLE TEAM USA skipper Jimmy Spithill commented in announcing the Red Bull Youth America’s Cup. "So I think this is one of the most exciting developments in the America’s Cup in a very long time."
