Olympians and world champions are set to be welcomed into Team New Zealand’s base as the search for their women’s and youth America’s Cup teams moves into the next stage.
A field of 121 applicants across both new additions has been narrowed down to just 16 sailors invited to trial for a spot in Barcelona next year, with some familiar names among them.
Liv Mackay, Jo Aleh, Alex Maloney, Molly Meech, Erica Dawson and Gemma Jones make up the shortlist for the women’s team, a list that had initially been expected to feature eight sailors.
Instead, 10 sailors have been named to the prospective youth team. Serena Woodall, Celia Willison, Veerle ten Have and Annabelle Rennie-Younger are all eligible for both teams, and the best-performing sailors in the group during the youth trial are also expected to be invited to trial for the women’s team.
The six male sailors invited to the youth trial are Jacob Pye, Joshua Armit, Seb Menzies, Leo Takahashi, Oscar Gunn and Sam Street.