SYDNEY, Australia - June 16, 2021 - SailGP has announced that SailGP will once again return to the iconic Sydney Harbour. The Australia Sail Grand Prix will slot in as the seventh event in the global championship’s second season calendar, on December 17 and 18, 2021, following the European stages of Season 2 which take place in Italy, Great Britain, Denmark, France and Spain.
Australia SailGP Team helmsman, Season 1 Champion and Olympic gold medalist Tom Slingsby had this to say:
“Having eight F50’s lined up and racing on Sydney Harbour is going to be a pretty spectacular sight for fans and with the calibre of sailors we have on these boats this year, we can expect action-packed racing. We lost to Ben Ainslie’s British team at last year’s Sydney event so we are focused on getting revenge and winning the event for Australia in front of a home crowd.”
The NSW Government, through Destination New South Wales, will join as the Official Host Venue Partner of the Australia Sail Grand Prix I Sydney, in Season 2. SailGP and the NSW Government will once again showcase Sydney as a world-class destination for sporting, leisure and business travel.
Minister for Jobs, Investment, Tourism and Western Sydney Stuart Ayres spoke about the benefits of bringing a world class sporting event such as SailGP to Sydney:
“Events such as the Australia Sail Grand Prix will see participants and spectators flock to Sydney, delivering an economic boost to our city, and helping rejuvenate NSW’s major events industry, following the crippling effects of COVID-19. Furthermore, the event enhances our city’s reputation as Australia’s premier sporting destination, once again showcasing Sydney on a global stage to prospective international visitors and sporting fans. In 2019, the inaugural SailGP season attracted a worldwide broadcast audience of 257 million across five events, as well as over 133,000 spectators.”
Crown Sydney will serve as Official Hotel and Entertainment Partner for the 2021 event. A defining landmark located in the heart of the harbour, the new premier venue will host SailGP’s VIP Adrenaline Lounge guest programme.
A range of fan experiences will be on offer for the event providing Australian fans with a front row seat to witness the most technologically advanced catamarans ripping through Sydney Harbour at breathtaking speeds of up to 100 kilometres per hour (km/h). Away from the racing, Barangaroo, Sydney’s sparkling waterfront precinct, will host the SailGP Village, offering exciting programming for fans. Port Authority of NSW will join the event as an Official Partner, working with SailGP to facilitate team bases, to be hosted in the heart of Sydney Harbour at White Bay.
After Sydney, SailGP will head to New Zealand in January 2022, followed by San Francisco, which will host the Grand Final on March 26-27, where the champion of Season 2 will be determined in a single $1 million winner-takes-all final.
Tickets for fan experiences at the Sydney Sail Grand Prix will go on sale in August. Visit SailGP.com/Sydney for more information.
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