Team New Zealand has added Josh Armit, Jake Pye, Jo Aleh, and Seb Menzies to its America’s Cup sailing team.
The announcement was made at the Team New Zealand base in Auckland.
Sailing for the first time in their new America’s Cup campaign on Friday, there was a new look to Emirates Team New Zealand in more than one way.
Recommissioning their AC40, complete with a clean white paint job, on the Hauraki Gulf, they did so following changes to themake-up of their crew.
The departure of three-time cup-winning helmsman Peter Burling left a major hole to be filled in the squad.
In the initial group of core sailors, the Defender made the surprise announcement that British sailor Chris Draper had been signed alongside Nathan Outteridge, Blair Tuke, Andy Maloney and Sam Meech, with Outteridge named as skipper.
While teams are allowed to have two non-nationals on board in Naples in 2027, Team NZ chief executive Grant Dalton said they were not tempted to bring in a second and acknowledged the team’s plans for Draper.
Josh Armit, Jake Pye, Jo Aleh and Seb Menzies have joined Emirates Team New Zealand for their America's Cup defence in Naples. Photo / Dean Purcell
“With Nath [Outteridge] going to the starboard side, we wanted Chris to steer port, but he’s not guaranteed that role, you know, the kids can push him out of there,” Dalton said.
“Jake the other day said something. I think it was Kevin [Shoebridge, chief operating officer] that said to him, ‘you know, you work on this, you might be able to be the person to fly the boat’ and he said, ‘stuff that, I want to drive it’.
“I actually really liked that. I thought ‘that’s perfect’. That’s exactly the attitude you need in Team NZ, and let’s see if they can push their way on.
“We’re absolutely open. We’re not closed. If they’re fast enough, they’ll get on.”
Pye was the only new face in the environment when the latest group was announced last week. The 20-year-old has been a constant presence on the podium at the moth world championships over the last couple of years. He made the shortlist for the youth campaign in Barcelona but missed out on a spot in the final team.
Emirates Team New Zealand returned to the water on their AC40 in Auckland last week. Photo / ETNZ
Of the new additions, Aleh and Menzies have spent time at the helm of an AC40 during the Women’s and Youth America’s Cup last year, while Armit worked the same side of the boat as Menzies as a trimmer for the youth team.
“The youth campaign was a tough one for us,” Menzies said.
“We didn’t perform how we wanted to. Just the limited time we had to get into the boat, it was probably one of the big factors and, definitely, it’s good this year having a longer lead in and being a part of the big team and yeah, it’s a really good set-up we’ve got this year.”
While the protocol limits the number of days teams can carry out two-boat testing to 35 until July next year, there is no limit on how much time they can spend on the water in their AC40 in one-design mode.
Teams will be allowed to get back out on their AC75s in early 2026, with 45 sailing days available to them before January 14, 2027.
Christopher Reive joined the Herald sports team in 2017, bringing the same versatility to his coverage as he does to his sports viewing habits.
