Challenges for Canada in St. Tropez
September 14, 2022
Passing the bell tower and old town of Saint Tropez on Race Day 2 / Felix Diemer for SailGP
The fifth event of SailGP Season 3, the Range Rover France Sail Grand Prix, took place this weekend in Saint-Tropez.
Racing got underway mid-afternoon on Saturday with some of the most exciting conditions that the SailGP teams had ever experienced. All the teams were put to the test in trying to find the balance between risk and speed, while keeping the assets intact for Sunday’s racing. The F50s hit record speeds flying through the water at over 90 km/hr for most of the day (the French team set a record of 99.9 km/hr!). A near capsize for the Canadians just before the finish line in Race two, was a spectacle for the thousands of spectators along the seawall in Saint-Tropez, but it meant a loss of four precious places to finish the day in eighth overall.
Day two offered up entirely different light air conditions which also challenged all the teams, especially the Strategists. Georgia Lewin-LaFrance was back onboard as the Strategist for the Canada SailGP Team, straight from the 49er FX Worlds in Nova Scotia.
Jon Buckle for SailGP
On Sunday, Race Management was forced to shorten Race four, then cancelled Races five and six, to move straight into the final race between GBR, NZL and USA. The Canadians led for all of Race five, but were a mere three seconds shy of the finish line when the 14 minute race time limit expired. This win would have dramatically changed the outcome for the Canadians this weekend, but the cancellation of the race meant a ninth place overall for the team.
Looking ahead, in less than two week’s time racing will start in Cadiz for the Spain Sail Grand Prix on 24-25 September (broadcast live on TSN).
SAILGP SEASON 3 CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS (after five events)
1 // Australia // 42 points
2 // New Zealand // 41 points
3 // Great Britain // 34 points
4 // Denmark // 33 points
5 // France // 31 points
6 // Canada // 29 points
7 // United States // 25 points
8 // Spain // 15 points
9 // Switzerland // 12 points
Results // Range Rover France Sail Grand Prix
