SailGP LA: French team name new F50 Aotearoa as sign of respect

Aotearoa was sailed to victory in the 2017 America’s Cup in Bermuda by Emirates Team New Zealand.

Eight years on, the French SailGP Team now look to sail the same vessel – with the same name – to success in the global foiling league.

In a bid to keep every team involved in the competition after adding two more crews for season five, SailGP purchased the AC50 foiling catamaran from Team NZ and converted it to meet the league’s one-design F50 specifications.

Getting the boat back on the water in Sydney last month, the French crew paid their respects to the boat’s history. Rather than renaming it something closer to home, Quentin Delapierre’s crew chose to keep the name Aotearoa.

“This boat achieved so much; a really good campaign in the America’s Cup in Bermuda,” the French skipper told the Herald.

“Pete [Burling], Blair [Tuke] and Emirates Team New Zealand won with this boat and it was just a mark of respect from us. We didn’t want to rename the boat with a French name.

“This boat, she had an unbelievable history with Team New Zealand and it’s good to keep her name.”

It comes after SailGP took on a different look to what was proposed at the end of season four.

When last year’s campaign wrapped up, it was announced that two new teams would join in season five and, with limited boats available, an incumbent team would likely be dropped.

Instead, purchasing the AC50 meant all 12 potential teams could take the starting line.

The French got that boat after a discussion with SailGP at the beginning of the season. The Spanish team had won the previous season, so they were given priority of available F50s.

France SailGP Team driver Quentin Delapierre. Photo / Bob Martin, SailGP.

The rebuilding process was quite delayed, so the team knew well in advance that they would not be on the water in Dubai.

“For Auckland, we were fully ready, mate. But it was not quick enough to have the platform ready to race so we had to wait until Sydney.”

The team finally rolled out their new F50 in Sydney, where they finished sixth. It was also the debut of their new livery, with the traditional red, white and blue of the French team’s boat replaced with a navy, gold and cream colour scheme.

“It’s really nice to see this boat with new colors and with a reshape from SailGP,” Delapierre said.

“They did an unbelievable job to fit it one-design and it also shows how good Emirates Team New Zealand did to build a boat and make it reliable.”

The team have also confirmed a new ownership group, which includes French football superstar Kylian Mbappe and hospitality company Accor among other investors. Mbappe’s ‘Inspired by KM’ (IBKM) association will also become the official charity partner of the team.

“It’s great news for the team but also for the sailing world. Having someone like Kylian interested in sailing is something new for our sport and it shows that sailing is getting bigger and bigger.”

Christopher Reive joined the Herald sports team in 2017, bringing the same versatility to his coverage as he does to his sports viewing habits.