SailGP Halifax: Black Foils miss chance at podium race, Australia capsize in hectic conditions

Australia became the second team in as many regattas to capsize at SailGP Halifax. Photo / ThreeNow

The Black Foils’ run of consecutive SailGP podium races has come to an end in hectic Halifax conditions.

On a day when high winds prevented the league from being able to get all 10 boats on the water, the New Zealand team finished fifth in both of the fleet races to miss the regatta’s main event.

There was plenty of drama on the water, too, with Australia capsizing in the final fleet race after the wingsail inverted as they came out of a turn.

It was the second time in as many events that a team capsized, after the USA toppled over after the wrong button was pressed and their wingsail inverted.

It remains to be seen what caused the Australians to go up on their side. Australia have since clarified that all crew members are accounted for, with details of the damage to their boat to be assessed in due course.

The USA were one of the two teams to not feature on the water in day two in Canada, alongside Switzerland.

With the wind making it difficult to crane the boats on to the water, the bottom two teams after the opening day were the ones to miss out.

”It’s been pretty bad weather and we haven’t been able to crane all the boats in,” said Switzerland driver Nathan Outteridge.

“They opted for rankings to get them in, so if you don’t have a good first day, it’s pretty hard to climb up the leaderboard if you’re not on the water.”

When racing did begin after a 30 minute delay, the Kiwis found themselves racing in the middle of the fleet and unable to find their way through to the front.

It was the same case in both of the day’s races, with the Kiwis finishing fifth in both. While they went into the day second in the standings, those results weren’t enough to keep them in the top three in a tightly contested regatta.

The Kiwis ultimately finished fifth. Great Britain won the event - their first since Giles Scott took over driving duties from Sir Ben Ainslie late last year - with France and Denmark filling out the rest of the podium.

Christopher Reive joined the Herald sports team in 2017, bringing the same versatility to his coverage as he does to his sports viewing habits.