The Black Foils launched their new F50 in Halifax ahead of their return to racing at the Canada Sail Grand Prix this weekend.
The F50 was built in Southampton UK at the SailGP Technologies plant, with the Black Foils Shore Crew working alongside the SailGP Technologies team, before it was shipped to Canada.
The Black Foils have two days to prepare the new boat before Friday’s scheduled practice racing with the rest of the SailGP fleet.
It is hoped that the three other damaged F50s – USA, Red Bull Italy and Mubadala Brazil – which were involved in the start-line pile-up in the New York event, will join them to present a full 13 strong fleet for this weekend’s SailGP event in Halifax, Canada.
Plenty of crew moves . . . In a surprise move, Paul Goodison will take the helm for the Brazilian team, with Martine Grael taking over as strategist for the return. A move the team says is driven by their performance goals.
Four months since suffering abdominal injuries in the Auckland collision with the Black Foils, DS Team France strategist Manon Audinet is back. She takes back the strategist role from Liv Mackay, who competed with the French team in Rio, Bermuda and New York.
Mackay will rejoin the Black Foils, who have also drafted in former Explora Swiss athlete Stewart Dodson for the remainder of the season in place of injured grinder Louis Sinclair.
Four wins in six events has put Australia’s Bonds Flying Roos firmly at the top of the Rolex SailGP Championship as the midway point of the season approaches.
Tom Slingsby’s outfit have been nothing short of exemplary in 2026. They’ve clocked 12 race wins in 41 races so far this season, and finished in the top three 24 times to give them an impressive average finish position of 3.8 – the best in the fleet by some margin.
Hot on their heels are Emirates Team GBR, who after the controversial finish with the Aussies in the final race in New York, will be keen reverse the result, and arrive in Portsmouth (25-26 July) for their home Grand Prix at the top of the leaderboard.
The unknown factor, one of many in Halifax, will be the performance of the Kiwi team, who have missed four events and have had very little time in the new boat. Can Burling and Co swing back into action.
The Canada Sail Grand Prix returns to Halifax this weekend, June 20-21.
