Emirates Great Britain SailGP Team has unveiled two new signings ahead of the ITM New Zealand Sail Grand Prix in Auckland this weekend.
First up is America’s Cup athlete Ben Cornish joining the SailGP crew as Reserve Sailor, while also supporting Coach Rob Wilson with tactics and analysis in the coaching booth during racing.
Cornish is no stranger to SailGP, having previously worked with Emirates GBR when Grinder Matt Gotrel was injured in an overboard incident at the Sydney event in Season 3. He also joined Season 4 Champions Spain as a Grinder for the Emirates Dubai Sail Grand Prix last November.
In addition to Cornish, Emirates GBR signed Paris 2024 Olympic gold medallist Ellie Aldridge to the SailGP team. Fresh from victory at the first ever Olympic kite foiling competition.
Aldridge joined Hannah Mills’ Athena Pathway squad in Barcelona for the Women’s and Youth America’s Cups. As part of her development programme with Athena Pathway, Aldridge will be training with Emirates GBR in the Strategist role on-board the F50 at a number of events this season.
Emirates GBR’s SailGP race crew for New Zealand:
- Dylan Fletcher as Driver
- Hannah Mills as Strategist
- Iain Jensen as Wing Trimmer
- Luke Parkinson as Flight Controller
- Nick Hutton and Neil Hunter as Grinders.
Sir Ben Ainslie, CEO of Emirates GBR, said: “It’s great to have Ben and Ellie join the team, they are both extremely talented athletes and I know they will be excellent additions both on and off the water.”
“We’ve had four additional training days in Auckland, which is rare in SailGP, so it’s given us valuable time to get to grips with the new T-foils and also allow training time for our team members in different positions.”
“We’ve had Hannah Mills training in the Driver position and Ellie Aldridge trying out the Strategist role for her first time on-board the F50. As a team we are committed to upskilling our crew and look forward to expanding this at other events this season.”
ITM New Zealand Sail Grand Prix | Auckland takes place on 18-19 January, with racing from 3 am – 4.30am BST (4pm-5.30pm NZDT).
Cornish is no stranger to SailGP, having previously worked with Emirates GBR when Grinder Matt Gotrel was injured in an overboard incident at the Sydney event in Season 3. He also joined Season 4 Champions Spain as a Grinder for the Emirates Dubai Sail Grand Prix last November.
In addition to Cornish, Emirates GBR has welcomed Paris 2024 Olympic gold medallist Ellie Aldridge to the team. Fresh from victory at the first ever Olympic kite foiling competition, the 28-year-old joined Hannah Mills’ Athena Pathway squad in Barcelona for the Women’s and Youth America’s Cups. As part of her development programme with Athena Pathway, Aldridge will be training with Emirates GBR in the Strategist role on-board the F50 at a number of events this season.
