A new America's Cup team has been created in Barcelona to represent the City, the Region and the Country in the challenge of the Youth and Women's America's Cup in 2024.
A collaboration between an experienced group of sailors and campaign managers together with the Real Club Náutico de Barcelona (RCNB) has received approval from the America's Cup Management Company (ACE) and Emirates Team New Zealand to be the Spanish challenger for the event in 2024.
Leading the team will be legendary Catalan sailor Guillermo Altadill and experienced international team manager Stewart Hosford.
SAILTEAM BCN has a series of key objectives for the 37th America's Cup
• Create a complete team with a campaign base in the Port of Barcelona.
• Purchase and operate two recently launched AC40 boats with a full America's Cup equipment structure.
• To recruit talent among women and young sailors from all over Spain in an open, application-based process to ensure transparent and open registration of athletes for the youth and women's teams.
• To compete and train from Barcelona with the aim of winning the Junior and Women's America's Cup in 2024.
• Build a talent platform and create pathways that will allow the team and athletes to compete in the future America's Cup at all levels.
The team has already commissioned the design of a team base in Barcelona's Port Vell and is in talks with several investors and sponsors to support the initiative.
Declarations:
Guillermo Altadill, Team Principal - "I have been involved in several Americas Cups and the opportunity to build a Spanish team and harness the incredible sailing talent across this country is an incredibly exciting opportunity for me. As a team, we will proudly represent Barcelona and our country as a whole to show the world that Spain is a leading sailing nation and be the local favourites for the Cup in 2024. What has already impressed me is the amount of interest and talent that this opportunity is already attracting.
Jordi Puig, RCNB President - "Our club has been supporting the America's Cup bid from the beginning and we have been in informal talks for several months with SailTeam BCN, as a sailing club we are incredibly excited about the agreement we reached last week. Our club is 100% behind the team and the America's Cup event in Barcelona and we look forward to supporting the team in their ambition to win the Youth and Women's America's Cup in 2024."
Grant Dalton, ACE CEO: "Guillermo and Stewart, together with the Real Club Náutico here in Barcelona, have created a world class plan and team and, as the event authority, we are delighted to endorse them as the local and Spanish team to compete in the Junior and Women's America's Cup as part of AC37, creating pathways for the next generation of local sailors to compete in the America's Cup".
