SailGP roars back into action in New York after Rio cancellation
NEW YORK, June 6 (Reuters) - SailGP teams will shake off the rust in New York this weekend, as the global racing championship gets back into action after a wingsail defect forced a brief hiatus with the cancellation of May's Rio event.
Organisers identified the defect after the Australian boat's wing collapsed in San Francisco in March and carried out repair and upgrade work to remedy the issue on the F50 fleet in time for the highly anticipated New York competition.
"We had almost two months of learning to take from the previous events," said Brazil's twice Olympic champion Martine Grael, SailGP's first-ever female driver.
"We have a lot of changes in our sailing - there are almost too many changes and we know you can only handle a few changes at a time. We're focusing to see what we can adapt here."
The recently added Brazil team hope to move up the standings from 10th as the action kicks off on Saturday at 1 p.m. ET (1700 GMT), two and a half hours earlier than planned due to inclement weather.
The three-times champions Australia, who hold just a one-point advantage over Britain in the standings, want to impress after making headlines off the water, with new A-List co-owners Hugh Jackman and Ryan Reynolds announced this week.
The great equaliser between the celebrity-fronted top dogs and the up-and-comers has been the competition's tech-first approach to sailing, with each of the vessels equipped with 125 sensors continuously feeding data.
"We give the data to everybody," SailGP's Chief Technology Officer Warren Jones told Reuters. "Top teams hate it, but the newer teams love it."
Jones was able to build the robust analytics operation from "a blank sheet of paper" by cherry-picking from billionaire co-founder Larry Ellison's Oracle capabilities.
The hope is that the data points broadcast across the competition can help transform the next generation of fans - newcomers and diehards alike.
"There are the basics - you need to know how fast people are going because then it adds the jeopardy of what's going on," said Jones.
"Then there's people out there who want to know how many tacks they've done and what the tack is compared to the last tack - we can rate that."
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
37 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Coco Gauff French Open prize money revealed as win over Aryna Sabalenka lands US star her second Grand Slam
Coco Gauff has landed the second Grand Slam title of her career after a thrilling victory over Aryna Sabalenka in Saturday's French Open final. The 21-year-old American sensation conquered Roland Garros for the very first time after coming from behind to defeat the top-ranked Sabalenka 6-7 (5), 6-2, 6-4. And as well as becoming French Open champion, Gauff has picked up some huge prize money in the process. The win on Saturday saw her claim a staggering $2.9million, while Sabalenka collected $1.4m as a consolation after her gut-wrenching defeat. Just three months on from her 21st birthday, Gauff has now raked in close to $30m over the course of her tennis career. Celebrity Net Worth estimated the US tennis star, who was listed by Forbes as the highest-paid female athlete in 2024, was worth $35m before Saturday's French Open final. That figure is only likely to have increased after she thickened her wallet and added another Grand Slam to her collection this weekend. The second-ranked Gauff made fewer mistakes in a contest that was full of tension and momentum swings to get the better of Sabalenka for the second time in a Grand Slam final. She also came from a set down to beat the Belarusian in the 2023 US Open final. She raised the winners' trophy aloft and then kissed it several times, before holding her hand over her heart when the US national anthem played. Gauff is the first American woman to win at Roland-Garros since Serena Williams in 2015. She then thanked her parents for doing everything 'from washing my clothes to keeping me grounded and giving me the belief that I can do it.' 'You guys probably believe in me more than myself,' Gauff said in her on-court speech. It was the first No. 1 vs. No. 2 final in Paris since 2013, when Williams defeated Maria Sharapova, and just the second in the last 30 years. After Sabalenka sent a backhand wide on her second match point, Gauff fell onto her back, covering her face with both hands as she started to sob, then got up and held her hand over her mouth. She continued to sob as she patted the clay with her left hand. Gauff greeted Sabalenka at the net with a warm hug and thanking the umpire, before screaming out with joy and relief. She then got to her knees and crouched forward, continuing to cry as she savored the win. The new champion later hugged film director Spike Lee and celebrated with her entourage in her box, three years after she lost in her first Grand Slam final at Roland-Garros. In her on-court speech, she also added that the defeat in 2022 at the age of 18 put her in a 'dark place' and then thanked the fans on Court-Philippe Chatrier, who were rooting mostly for her.
Reuters
an hour ago
- Reuters
Adam 'Pacman' Jones arrested, charged with assault of an officer
June 7 - Former NFL defensive back Adam "Pacman" Jones is facing several charges in Kentucky, including assault of a police officer and public intoxication. WHIO TV 7 in Ohio reported that Jones was arrested on Friday night and booked into the Kenton County Jail early Saturday morning. Jones, 41, played 12 seasons in the NFL for four teams, including an eight-year run with the Cincinnati Bengals from 2010-17 that included All-Pro honors in 2014 and a Pro Bowl selection in 2015. This is not his first run-in with the law. Most recently, Jones was arrested at the Cincinnati Northern Kentucky Airport in 2023 on charges of alcohol intoxication, terroristic threats and disorderly conduct. The NFL suspended Jones for the entire 2007 season for numerous violations of the NFL's personal conduct policy. He also missed the 2009 season. Drafted in the first round (sixth overall) by Tennessee in 2005, Jones recorded 17 interceptions and 509 tackles in 146 games (104 starts) with the Titans (2005-06), Dallas Cowboys (2008), Bengals and Denver Broncos (2018). --Field Level Media
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
Aaron Rodgers arrives in Pittsburgh to make Steelers deal official as NFL limbo finally comes to an end
Aaron Rodgers has touched down in Pittsburgh as his drawn-out NFL limbo appears to have finally come to an end. The quarterback is set to play his 21st season in the NFL with the Steelers after passing his physical and signing a one-year deal with the franchise - three months from his New York Jets split. The 41-year-old made it official today after arriving at the Steelers' facilities Saturday to sign his contract, which is worth $13.65million, including $10million guaranteed, according to Adam Schefter. The veteran had been agonizing over his NFL future for months after being released by the Jets in March, with the option of retirement not entirely off the table. Yet, Rodgers was captured arriving at UPMC Rooney Sports Complex Saturday morning, where he was ushered into the building. The former Super Bowl winner cut a laid back figure in a grey hoodie, black shorts and cap as he approached the door with his wired headphones still in. The veteran was captured entering the Steelers' facilities on Saturday morning Now, the four-time MVP will be able to get to work with the Steelers' offense in time for Pittsburgh's first game of the season on September 7 when he is expected to make his debut - against the Jets, no less. To add to the fascinating narrative surrounding that Week 1 fixture, New York has also moved on with a new quarterback of its own in Justin Fields - who turned down a new contract in Pittsburgh and entered free agency himself at the end of last season. Rodgers is expected to step in as the Steelers' starter for the 2025 campaign ahead of Mason Rudolph and Will Howard, who was selected in the sixth round of the NFL Draft in April. However, not everyone in the Steel City seems happy with the turn of events in the franchise's quarterback room. Many Steelers fans took to social media to slam the team over the move, while sports analyst Skip Bayless launched into a lengthy rant in a five-minute clip after the news broke. 'I can't believe the Pittsburgh Bleeping Steelers just signed a washed-up, 41-year old, finger pointing, blame deflecting DIVA,' the former FOX star captioned the video. Rodgers is best known for the 18 seasons he spent with the Green Bay Packers, where he won the Super Bowl in 2011. However, the four-time MVP failed to hit his stride in a miserable two-year tenure with the Jets and eventually split with the team on March 12. After leaving New York, Rodgers had been linked with city rivals the Giants and the Minnesota Vikings as well as the Steelers. It quickly became clear that Pittsburgh was the only realistic option on the table for him, before he jetted to Pennsylvania for talks with Mike Tomlin. The Steelers coach later revealed they discussed 'things that he values as a player and a man and what he might be looking for with his next stop.' 'It's been reported that he spent a day with us, and it was a really good day,' Tomlin said. 'I really just wanted to spend more time just getting to know him better.' Despite that meeting reportedly being held in early March, Rodgers still took significant time to weigh up whether he should play on in the NFL for at least another year or hang up his cleats. Last month he revealed that tragedy in his personal life, with multiple members of his inner circle said to be battling cancer, had forced him to put his decision on hold. 'I've been in the weeds with these people who are close to me that have cancer,' he told Joe Rogan on his podcast. Rodgers did not specify who in his inner circle was battling cancer, or how many had been stricken with the disease.
