SailGP drivers and athletes have welcomed double Olympic champion Martine Grael to the league following her announcement as driver of the new Brazil team.
Grael will take the wheel of the Brazilian F50 at the beginning of the 2024/25 Season - kicking off her Championship campaign on the waters of Mina Rashid in Dubai on November 23-24.
A double Olympic champion and Volvo Ocean Race veteran, Grael is already well acquainted with many of the SailGP athletes and drivers.
ROCKWOOL DEN driver Nicolai Sehested and Grael were both members of Team AkzoNobel during the 2017-18 Volvo Ocean Race.
Reacting to the news, Sehested reflected on his experience racing alongside Grael during the Volvo Ocean Race. “We spent a lot of hours together and I look forward to racing against her this time instead of on the same boat.”
He added that Grael will ‘be just fine’ stepping into the world of SailGP. “I don’t think Martine needs a lot of advice from me - she’s a professional sailor, she’s been winning her whole life.”
United States driver Taylor Canfield added that Grael’s appointment as driver of Brazil ‘shows the level that we’re operating at in the league’. “She’s a really accomplished sailor and we’re stoked to have her be a part of it and bring another Olympic gold medallist into the fold.”
New Zealand driver Peter Burling agreed, “it’ll be great to line up against [Martine] and the rest of the Brazilian team in SailGP.”
Fellow Olympian Sebastien Schneiter, driver of the Swiss team, said Grael’s appointment was ‘huge for SailGP and for sport’.
“I’m super excited to see her skills against the rest of the fleet,” he added. “I’ve been following her FX career closely and her determination has always been impressive.”
He advised Grael to ‘learn from the most experienced athletes in the league’ while ‘getting used to the high speeds!’
Canfield’s ‘one piece of advice’ meanwhile was ‘just to watch as much video as possible’ before racing begins.
Australia strategist Tash Bryant said Grael’s appointment as the first female driver in the league was ‘a huge leap forward for the sport as a whole’.
“It’s going to inspire and motivate young female sailors watching on from around the world for what is possible for them in the sport.”
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