Denmark SailGP Team presented by ROCKWOOL has launched in Bermuda ahead of SailGP Season 3 – as driver Nicolai Sehested admits that it’s time for the red boat to start putting learnings into practice.
The Bermuda Sail Grand Prix presented by Hamilton Princess takes place 14-15 May in the Sound, and will feature two new teams – Canada and Switzerland – racing their first Sail Grand Prix as Season 3 gets underway.
Joining the global racing league for Season 2, the Danes grabbed three race wins in their first campaign – including a memorable victory on home waters at the ROCKWOOL Denmark Sail Grand Prix in Aarhus last August – but still search for that elusive overall event podium spot.
Joining the global racing league for Season 2, the Danes grabbed three race wins in their first campaign – including a memorable victory on home waters at the ROCKWOOL Denmark Sail Grand Prix in Aarhus last August – but still search for that elusive overall event podium spot.
“We aren’t the newbies anymore, and for the first time we’re returning to a SailGP venue – so hopefully we can use our experience of last season to get the edge this weekend,” says Sehested.
“Is the honeymoon period over for us? In sport, I don’t think you get much of a honeymoon period at all… but it’s definitely time to start putting our learnings into practice.”
He continues: “We’re confident going into the new season. We’ve already shown that we can win races against the best teams in SailGP – we just need to start putting those victories together with more consistency. We are focused on doing that, starting in Bermuda.”
Sehested reflected on the team’s first few events and the challenges of being a new team into SailGP – arguably the most talented fleet ever to line up in the sport.
“It’s really not easy being a new team in SailGP – the level is so high, and there is very little time in the boat – so you spend a lot of time playing catch up to the top teams, who have been racing in these boats for years,” he adds.
“In that situation, the open data, available to all teams, is invaluable. If you can optimise that, it means that you can progress even when you’re not on the water. We spent a lot of hours working through the data in Season 2.”
This week, Denmark SailGP Team announced an expanded, world-class and mixed crew, with a renewed focus on talent development.
Three new faces – Luke Payne (AUS), Julius Hallström (DEN/SWE) and CP Lübeck (DEN) – have joined up with Sehested’s squad ahead of Season 3.
“This is really Denmark SailGP Team 2.0, and it’s a very exciting moment for us as we prepare for our second season,” he says.
“The objective for this project has always been to build a Danish team good enough to win SailGP – and create pathways for the next generation of Denmark’s foiling talent to climb to the top of the sport.
“But we also need international, top-level experience onboard the boat. Luke and Julius add some real firepower into our ranks, and are up there with the strongest grinders in SailGP, so will give us a serious boost this season.”
The trio joins Sehested, Rasmus Køstner, Tom Johnson, Hans-Christian Rosendahl, Martin Kirketerp, Anne-Marie Rindom and Katja Salskov-Iversen to form a young and diverse crew with Olympic, round-the-world and match racing experience.
Bermudian storms have hit the fleet this week, putting paid to some opportunities for training – but the conditions are likely to clear up in time for the weekend.
Danish fans can tune into TV2 Sport X to watch the racing live at 18.55 CEST on both 14 and 15 May. International viewers can visit sailgp.com/watch to find out how to follow in their market.
