LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM - July 12, 2024 – Sir Ben Ainslie and Hannah Mills’ Emirates Great Britain SailGP team have been crowned Champions of SailGP’s Impact League, to be awarded at the first-ever Impact Awards – a celebration of the season’s sustainable efforts on and off the water, held in the lead up to the Season 4 Grand Final in San Francisco. The team’s victory marks the third new Impact League champion in as many seasons for the parallel podium to the racing Championship.
A world first, the Impact League runs alongside the SailGP Season Championship itself, and tracks the positive actions teams take to reduce their overall footprint and accelerate inclusivity in sailing. The competition is overseen and judged independently by some of the most credible and noteworthy names in industry - from renowned leader in climate policy, Rachel Kyte, to three-time W Series Champion and IndyCar driver, Jamie Chadwick. Throughout the season, teams are judged against four new Focus Areas aligned to SailGP’s overall strategy ambitions- Climate Action, Accelerating Inclusion, Race to Zero Waste, and Breaking Boundaries.
The Great Britain team have rounded off a hugely impactful season on and off the water to lift the highly coveted trophy and secure prize funds for their purpose partner, The 1851 Trust’s climate education programme Protect Our Future, and their collaborative ambition to empower 3 million young people to take climate action by the end of Season 5. Emirates GBR had just a handful of points lead over runners-up ROCKWOOL Denmark - last season’s Impact League champions - and Switzerland in third place.
And what sealed the deal for Emirates Great Britain was securing first place in the fourth and final round of the League’s focus areas – Breaking Boundaries – the opportunity to increase gender equity on board the F50 in line with SailGP’s Women’s Pathway Strategy, and focus on getting female athletes more time in the driver, wing trimmer and flight controller roles.
Ahead of the inaugural Impact Awards hosted at San Francisco’s
Exploratorium, Emirates GBR Strategist Hannah Mills OBE, said: “We are so proud to be crowned winners of the Impact League. The whole team has worked extremely hard to not only make positive changes ourselves, but also inspire others to take climate action too. Across the season we’ve achieved some amazing things with our Purpose Partners, The 1851 Trust’s climate education programme Protect Our Future and Low Carbon, from educating 1,750 children at SailGP events on climate action to taking our team base off-grid with our renewable energy installation. We are looking forward to defending the Impact League trophy next season with even more exciting and innovative projects.”
Sir Ben Ainslie, CEO Emirates GBR CEO enthused: “Winning the Impact League is testament to the team’s unwavering commitment to sustainability, innovation, and using the power of sport to inspire and educate the next generation. After placing second in the first Impact League Season and second last year, we are proud to reach the top spot this Season. This win highlights the importance of collaboration and innovation in addressing environmental challenges. Athletes and sports teams have a responsibility to use their platform to drive positive change and raise awareness about climate issues. By advocating for sustainability, they can help protect our future.”
After finishing third on the Impact League podium in Season 3, Emirates GBR chased down the trophy with increased commitment and focus throughout the season. The team placed second in the Climate Action Focus Area for their work with global renewable energy company, Low Carbon, to create a bespoke portable solar and wind installation. The installation, consisting of 38 solar panels and two micro wind turbines, produces enough renewable energy to take the Emirates GBR team base off-grid at events and also help power other SailGP teams. Following the project’s success, the team and Low Carbon worked together to produce a Blueprint to provide other sports teams and industries with the information needed to incorporate renewable energy .
Emirates GBR then took the top spot for Breaking Boundaries, with highly ambitious and committed pathways for athletes Hannah Mills and Hannah Diamond, on and off the water. Mills and Emirates GBR CEO Sir Ben Ainslie also launched Athena Pathway, a development programme for female and youth athletes to widen the talent pool for SailGP. Emirates GBR’s commitment to accelerating inclusion in the sport is also exemplary, creating an internship programme in collaboration with The Greig City Academy, an inner-city London school. Kai Hockley, an 18-year-old from Tottenham, London, was part of the first intake and has traveled to five SailGP events with the team to date. They have also hosted more than 1,750 young people in climate action workshops across the calendar, with the support of their partner, Protect Our Future.
While only one can lift the coveted Impact League trophy, there were stand-out moments for all front-runners this season. ROCKWOOL Denmark led the way for most of the season, excelling in Focus Area projects and scoring a huge 90 out of 100 points in Accelerating Inclusion. The team’s community outreach project in Taranto engaged under privileged groups in the local community, reducing social-economic barriers to inclusion by broadening their understanding of issues such as ocean science and climate change.
Switzerland were also ones to watch. After a complete U-turn from their standing in Season 3, several high-impact initiatives put the Swiss on the podium forefront, notably their initiative to collect water from boat washdowns to reuse and recycle, which judges acknowledged had significant potential to scale across the marine industry - and beyond…
Speaking from the heart ahead of the Impact Awards, SailGP’s Chief Purpose Officer Fiona Morgan said: "I am incredibly proud to have delivered another year of the Impact League and it is great to see a new team winning - three different Champions in as many seasons - and such fierce competition with all teams upping their game across the season calendar. The global impact the Podium for the Planet delivers is unrivaled; working with world-class partners we’re creating a ripple effect in sailing and inspiring other sports. I am really thrilled for the Great Britain team and their Impact League title - they came into the season wanting to win and have delivered a super impactful calendar, with great initiatives across both social and environmental sustainability”.
ENDS
SAILGP SEASON 4 IMPACT LEAGUE LEADERBOARD //
1 // Emirates Great Britain // 602 points
2 // ROCKWOOL Denmark // 598 points
3 // Switzerland // 590 points
4 // France // 571 points
5 // New Zealand // 560 points
6 // Australia // 544 points
7 // Germany 513
8 // Canada 502 points
9 // Spain 486 points
10 // United States 479 points
CONTACT SAILGP | Laetitia Redbond | Head of Strategic Communications | lredbond@sailgp.com
MEDIA HUB // The SailGP Media Hub is a dedicated space for media to be able to cover SailGP events remotely and includes live streams and updates, press conferences participation and post-race athlete interviews. Access the SailGP Media Hub via Mediahub.SailGP.com.
ABOUT SAILGP // The most exciting racing on water, SailGP is a global championship with national teams battling it out in identical high-tech, high-speed 50-foot foiling catamarans at iconic venues around the world. Racing faster than the wind at speeds approaching 100 km/h // 60mph, SailGP is driven by the sport’s top athletes, with national pride, personal glory, and a top prize of US$7 million all at stake. Powered by nature - wind, sea and sun- SailGP is the first climate positive sports and entertainment property in the world. Visit SailGP.com to find out more.
Powered by nature - wind, sea and sun - SailGP is the first ever sport to report with CDP and the first organization to achieve both the Carbon Neutral International Standard and participation in the UN Climate Neutral Now Initiative, by measuring, reducing and balancing its carbon footprint, championing sustainable growth. Our 2024/2025 Season Calendar has been designed with consideration of league-wide carbon emissions reductions, specifically focused on SailGP's key 2025 target to power all events by clean energy. The league’s wider targets are to reduce its direct operational footprint by 55% by 2025 and achieve Net-Zero by 2040. Measures include ensuring a regionally-clustered schedule, scrutinizing freight inventories to find efficiencies that reduce weight & volume, whilst utilizing low-carbon transport methods such as road and sea (with biofuels via carbon insetting) where possible. Find out more at SailGP.com.
ABOUT THE EMIRATES GREAT BRITAIN SAILGP TEAM // Sir Ben Ainslie holds the majority ownership of the Emirates Great Britain SailGP Team, alongside Chris Bake and Misland Capital which is using its platform to change the sports sponsorship model in order to bring together groups of like-minded companies, who want to collaborate and accelerate change for a wider purpose. The Emirates Great Britain SailGP Team are also committed to accelerating gender equality across the sport with the team’s Athena Pathway Program run by Hannah Mills OBE – the most successful female Olympic athlete in the world of sailing, and IOC Sustainability Ambassador.
SailGP teams are supported by purpose partners who share their personal values and commitment to deliver impact for a better future. The Emirates Great Britain SailGP Team’s purpose partner is the 1851 Trust’s Protect Our Future platform which aims to empower young people through knowledge and education to take action against climate change.